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LIBRARY 

OF  THE 


University  of  California. 


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MAN: 
WHERE,  WHENCE,  AND  WHITHER] 


"  In  examining  the  history  of  mankind,  as  well  as  in  examining  the  phenom- 
ena of  the  material  world,  when  we  cannot  trace  the  process  by  which  an  event 
has  been  produced,  it  is  often  of  importance  to  he  able  to  show  how  it  may  have 
been  produced  by  natural  causes.  Thus,  although  it  is  impossible  to  determine? 
with  certainty  what  the  steps  were  by  which  any  particular  language  was  form, 
ed,  yet  if  we  can  show,  from  the  known  principles  of  human  natnre,  how  all  its 
various  pr.rts  might,  gradually  have  arisen,  the  mind  is  not  only  to  a  certain  de- 
gree satisfied,  but  a  check  is  given  to  that  indolent  philosophy  which  refers  to  a 
miracle  whatever  appearances  in  the  material  and  moral  worlds  it  is  unable  to. 
explain." — Dugald  Stewabt. 


T 


WHERE,  WHENCE,  AND  WHITHER? 


BEING  A  GLANCE  AT  MAN  IN  HIS  NATURAL 
HISTORY  RELATIONS. 


BT 

DAVID  PAGE,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.E.,  F.G.S., 

AUTHOR  OP    "PAST  AND  PEESENT  LIFE  OF  THE  GLOBE,"  "  PHILOSOPHY  OF   GEOLOQT, 
"GEOLOGY   FOB   GENEEAL  EEADEES,"   ETC.,    ETC.    EIO. 


First    A.iTierican.    Edition. 


udSSffi^ 


l>t 


1ft 


»  -       . 


Nero  ^ork: 

MOORHEAD,    SIMPSON    &    BOND. 
1868. 


Aqatiiyniaj«  Press,  No.  60  Duane  Street, 
New  York. 


•  *     •  ••  J  • 

•• •  •       •      • 


PREFACE 


A  sketch  of  the  thoughts  expressed  in  the  following 
pages  was  given  in  two  lectures  to  the  Members  of 
the  Edinburgh  Philosophical  Institution,  in  November 
18G6.  Exciting  considerable  interest  at  the  time,  and 
receiving  through  the  newspapers  a  wider  audience 
than  that  to  which  they  were  originally  addressed, 
these  lectures,  as  might  have  been  expected,  met  with 
a  somewhat  varied  reception.  By  many  the  views 
they  contained  were  adopted  without  reserve ;  by 
some,  though  not  adopted,  they  were  received  in  a 
spirit  of  candor  and  inquiry ;  while  by  a  few  the 
whole  argument  was  met  with  the  most  vehement 
and  unreasoning  opposition.  Had  the  last  contented 
themselves  with  merely  opposing — every  man  having 
a  right  to  the  free  utterance  of  his  opinions — the  argu- 
ment  on    the   author's   part   might   have  terminated 

21339 


VI  PREFACE. 

with  the  lectures ;  but  as  they  resorted,  either  ignor- 
antlj  or  intentionally,  to  misrepresentation,  he  has 
been  constrained,  in  justice  to  himself  and  his  subject, 
to  prepare  the  following  extension,  and  seek  for  his 
views  a  wider,  and  he  trusts  also  a  fairer  considera- 
tion. 

If  the  reader  has  not  hitherto  directed  his  attention 
to  the  natural-history  relations  of  Man,  to  his  origin, 
antiquity,  and  destiny,  what  follows  may  assist  him  in 
his  considerations  ;  if  he  has  made  the  question  a  sub- 
ject of  research,  and  his  views  should  coincide  in  the 
main  with  those  of  the  author,  he  may  glean  from 
these  pages  some  new  facts  to  strengthen  his  convic- 
tions ;  and  if,  on  the  other  hand,  he  has  been  led  by 
early  training  to  entertain  opinions  at  variance  with 
those  herein  expressed,  a  thoughtful  perusal  may  in- 
duce him,  if  not  to  forego  his  preconceptions,  at  all 
events  to  review  the  evidence  upon  which  they  have 
been  founded.  This  is  all  the  author  desires ;  the 
most  he  hopes  for ;  his  wish  being  to  contribute  his 
mite  to  that  modern  movement  of  mind  which  seeks 
to  substitute  inquiry  for  dogmatism,  comprehensible 
methods  for  miracles,  and  rational  convictions  for 
traditional  beliefs. 


PREFACE.  Vll 

Though  cursory,  and  intentionally  so,  these  chap- 
ters are  given  in  strict  connection,  and  the  author 
would  solicit  from  those  who  may  turn  to  them  the 
same  sequence  in  perusal — a  following  of  the  argu- 
ment from  be^inninc;  to  end  and  in  the  order  enunci- 
ated.  What  appears  unsatisfactory  under  one  section 
may  receive  further  elucidation  under  another,  and 
what  startles  at  the  outset  may  be  accepted  without 
reserve  at  a  future  stage  of  the  exposition.  Man's 
Where,  Whence,  and  Whither,  are  inseparably 
linked  together,  and  there  eau  be  no  intelligent 
-appreciation  of  the  one  without  a  competent  knowl- 
edge of  the  others — no  successful  dealing  with  one 
problem  unless  studied  in  connection  with  the  other 
problems  that  arise  from  a  philosophical  consideration 
-of  the  whole  question  of  Man's  place  in  nature. 

Edinbukgu,  September,  1SG7. 


CONTENTS 


CONTENTS. 


PAQB 

Introductory 17 

Nature  and  Importance  of  the  Inquiry. 
General  unwillingness  to  approach  it. 
Theological  Opposition  and  Misrepresentation. 
Its  treatment  as  a  question  of  Natural  History. 
Ultimate  Object,  Truth  and  Rational  Beliefs. 
Bearing  of  the  Inquiry  on  other  subjects  of  re- 
search. 


Man:  Wiiere? 

His  Zoological  Relations 37 

Community  of  Life-condition. 
Structural  affinity  to  other  Animals. 
Ascent  through  Adaptive  Modification. 
Principle  of  Variation  ever  operative. 
Mental  affinity  to  other  Animals. 
Man  Improvable  and  Progressive. 
Theory  of  Spiritual  Community  of  Life. 
Our  First  Proposition. 


Xll  CONTENTS. 

PAGE. 

His  Geographical  Relations 61 

Influence  of  External  Conditions  on  Life. 
Their  Influence  on  Civilization. 
Variation  through  Physical  Surroundings. 
Power  of  Locality  on  Mental  Characteristics. 
External  Conditions  merely  Co-factors  in  the  Law  of 

Variation. 
Our  Second  Proposition. 

His  Ethnological  Relations       ....  72 

Distribution  and  Varietal  Distinctions. 
Question  of  Species  or  Varieties. 
Plurality  or  Unity  of  Origin  ? 
Higher  and  Lower  Varieties. 
Relations  of  these  in  Time  and  Space. 
Lowly  Origin  of  the  Human  Race. 
Question  of  Extinct  Varieties. 
Our  Third  Proposition. 

His  Functional  Relations 87 

Physical  and  Mental  Functions  in  common  with  other 

Animals. 
Man  Improvable  and  Progressive. 
Influence  and  Results  of  this  Progression. 
Man  a  Modifier  of  Nature. 
Spread  and  Ascension  c f  the  Higher,  and  Decline  and 

Extinction  of  the  Lower  Varieties. 
Our  Fourth  Proposition. 

Man  :  Whence  ? 

His  Historical  Relations 105 

Tradition  Uncertain  and  Unreliable. 
All  History  Recent  and  Partial. 
Discrepancies  in  Chronological  Systems. 


CONTENTS.  Xlll 

TAOH 

Inferences  as  to  Man's  Antiquity  from  the  known  rate 

of  Progress  in  Civilization  and  Refinement. 
Our  Fifth  Proposition. 


His  Geological  Relations 118 

Relative  Chronology  of  Geology. 
Nature  of  Geological  Evidence. 
Ages  of  Stone,  Bronze,  and  Iron. 
High  Antiquity  of  Man  in  Western  Europe,  as  evi- 
denced by  Remains  of  Human  Art. 
Higher  Inferential  Antiquity  in  Asia  and  the  East. 
Our  Sixth  Proposition. 


His  Genetic   Relations 138 

Order  and  Succession  of  Life  in  Time. 

Hypothesis  of  Development  or  Derivative  Descent. 

Its  Proofs  and  Probabilities. 

As  applicable  to  the  Human  Race. 

Not  necessarily  Degrading. 

Manner  in  which  it  should  be  received. 

Our  Seventh  Proposition. 

Man:  Whither? 

His  Progressive  Relations 161 

Natural  Tendency  to  be  interested  in  the  Future. 
«  Incessant  Change  and  Progress  in  Nature. 

Extinction  and  Creation  ever  coincident. 
Higher  Physical  Developments. 
No  Abatement  of  Cosmical  Forces. 
Intellectual  and  Moral  Ascension. 
Newer  and  Higher  Varieties  of  Man. 


XIV 


CONTENTS. 


PAGB. 


This  Progression  in  Obvious  Operation. 

Effect  of  Geological  Changes. 

Differences  among  Men  lessened  but  not  obliterated 

by  Higher  Developments. 
Our  Eighth  Proposition. 


Conclusion 


179 


Summary  of  the  Argument. 

Its  Practical  and  Scientific  Bearings. 

Opposition  Unavailing. 

Prospect  of  its  Adoption. 


Index 


191 


INTRODUCTORY. 


INTRODUCTORY. 


Nature  and  importance  of  the  Inquiry— General  unwillingness  to 
approach  it — Theological  Opposition  and  Misrepresentation — 
Its  treatment  as  a  question  of  Natural  History— Ultimate 
Object,  Truth  and  Rational  Beliefs— Bearing  of  the  Inquiry  on 
other  subjects  of  research. 

At  the  present  moment  there  are  few  scientific 
questions  exciting  so  much  interest  as  the  origin  and 
antiquity  of  man.  And  yet,  general  as  the  interest  is, 
there  is  no  subject  so  furtively  studied  and  so  unfairly 
dealt  with.  Impressed  with  certain  theological  no- 
tions, a  large  section  of  inquirers  approach  the  invest- 
igation with  restraint  and  distrust,  while  even  in  many 
of  our  learned  societies  an  uneasy  tenderness  prevails 
the  moment  it  is  announced  for  discussion.  Plant-life, 
and  animal-life  in  its  lower  phases,  may  be  investi- 
gated and  generalised  upon  with  any  amount  of  free- 
dom ;  but,  strangely  enough,  the  study  of  man,  who 
at  present  crowns  the  biological  system,  is  shirked  as 
if  it  were  impiety  to  approach  it.  It  is  true  that 
2 


18  man: 


anatomically   most    important   knowledge    has   been 
arrived  at,  but  this  is  more  on  account  of  therapeutic 
considerations  than  for  biological  conclusions.     Phy- 
siologically, too,  great  advances   have   recently  been 
made  in  the  determination  of  organic  functions  ;  and 
psychologically,  writers  are  beginning  to  hazard  some- 
thing like  a  scientific  opinion  as  to  the  relations  that 
subsist    between   physical    organization    and    mental 
manifestations.     But  with  regard  to  man's  relations  to 
the   great   scheme   of  life ;    his  where,    whence,  and 
whither  in  the  cosmical  plan  of  continuity  and  pro- 
gress ;  few  have  made  them  the  subjects  of  earnest 
study,  and  still  fewer  have  ventured  to  give  expres- 
sion to  their  convictions.     It  is  only  of  recent  years 
that  the  study  of  man  has  been  recognized  as  an  inde- 
pendent branch  of  natural  science,  under  the  title  of 
Anthropology,  and  the  only  British  institution  for  ita 
furtherance,  the  Anthropological  Society  of  London, 
is  but  a  thing  of  yesterday.     If  not  ignored  in  certain 
quarters,  the  investigation  has  at  least  been  discour- 
aged ;  and  where  not  ignored  it  has  been  too  much 
held  in  abeyance  to  popular  prejudices   and  precon- 
ceptions.    Such  weakness,    however,  is  far  beneath 
the  dignity  of  science ;    such  restraints  on  free   and 
rational  inquiry  can  never  be  conducive  to  the  inter- 
ests of  religion.     Man  in  all  his  relations  is  intimately 
connected  with  external  nature  ;   and  these  relations, 
as   bearing  on  his   physical,  intellectual,  and   moral 


INTRODUCTORY.  19 


welfare,  become  not  only  legitimate  but  imperative 
subjects  of  research.  The  more  man  knows  of  nature 
and  nature's  methods,  the  less  will  he  be  inclined  to 
disregard  these  methods ;  and  the  more  he  knows  of 
nature  and  nature's  laws,  the  higher  his  conceptions 
of  creative  wisdom  and  perfection.  These  laws  and 
methods  may  be  studied  in  connection  with  the  inor- 
ganic world,  or  with  the  lower  forms  of  organized 
existence;  but  they  assume  a  higher  interest  and  leave 
a  deeper  impress  when  viewed  in  relation  to  man,  the 
place  he  holds,  and  the  place  he  is  destined  to  hold, 
in  the  great  progressional  scheme  of  creation. 
"Know  thyself,"  is  an  injunction,  physically  and 
morally,  as  imperative  on  the  race  as  it  is  on  the 
individual. 

It  is  of  no  avail  to  tell  us,  as  some  would  vainly  do, 
that  man's  chief  business  is  with  the  present  and  the 
duties  which  lie  before  him  in  daily  life,  and  that  it  is 
of  little  moment  to  him  whether  his  race  has  inherited 
this  globe  for  six  thousand  or  for  sixty  thousand  years, 
or  whether  he  shall  continue  to  inherit  it  in  increas- 
ing or  decreasing  variety.  We  are  compelled,  by  an 
irresistible  impulse  of  our  nature,  to  look  backward  to 
the  past  as  well  as  to  look  forward  to  the  future  ;  and 
necessarily  so,  since  the  main  business  of  the  present 
is  to  draw  from  the  past,  that  it  may  be  prepared  for 
the  future.  The  present  is  thus  intimately  connected 
with  the  past,  as  it  is  inseparably  interwoven  with  the 


20  man : 


future,  and  cannot  be  fully  understood  unless  in  rela- 
tion to  what  runs  gone  before  as  well  as  to  that  which 
must  inevitably  follow.  The  great  business  of  life, 
even  that  which  lies  most  immediately  before  us,  will 
be  more  fully  understood  and  more  rationally  per- 
formed the  better  man  knows  the  place  he  holds  and 
the  relation  he  bears  to  the  plan  of  creation.  Man's 
"Where  has  descended  from  his  Whence,  and  his 
Whence  and  his  Where  must  indicate  his  Whither. 
Where  are  we  ?  Whence  are  we  ?  and  Whither  are  we 
going?  are  questions  which  incessantly  force  them- 
selves upon  our  attention  ;  and  science  merely  seeks, 
with  all  humility  and  reverence,  to  arrive  at  a  satis- 
factory answer.  We  cannot  stem  this  desire  for 
knowledge,  because  nature  has  made  it  necessary  that 
we  should  know ;  and  whatever  light  can  be  reflected 
from  the  past  on  the  path  of  the  present  is  a  guide  to 
the  existing,  just  as  every  indication  of  the  future, 
from  a  study  of  the  past  and  present,  must  be  an  in- 
centive to  compliance  with  its  requirements. 

Man  has  no  intuitive  knowledge  of  his  natural- 
history  relations  more  than  he  has  of  other  subjects. 
The  beliefs  by  which  he  is  influenced  are  ever  relative 
to  his  knowledge,  and  the  fuller  his  knowledge,  the 
more  harmonious,  therefore,  the  discharge  of  his  rela- 
tions. It  is  true  we  may  not  be  always  able  to  com- 
prehend the  relations  which  the  Creator  has  established 
between  us  and  the  surrounding  world ;  but  this  we 


INTRODUCTORY.  21 


can  only  ascertain  after  we  have  made  the  effort,  and 
there  were  an  end  to  all  knowledge  did  we  believe 
there  was  aught  in  nature  incomprehensible  or  placed 
beyond  the  range  of  reason.  Indeed,  man's  incessant 
efforts  to  know  belie  this  conviction ;  and  generally 
the  more  mysterious  the  phenomenon  the  more 
intense  the  curiosity  to  resolve  it.  However  much  it 
may  be  misrepresented  and  opposed,  this  is  all  that 
science  aims  at  in  the  present  inquiry.  Its  object  is 
truth  and  rational  beliefs ;  and  unless  our  beliefs  be 
founded  upon  reason,  they  are  unworthy  of  the  name, 
and  become  the  mere  crudities  of  ignorance  and  pre- 
judice. The  revelations  of  science  may,  and  in  the 
nature  of  things  must,  often  be  at  variance  with 
popular  preconceptions ;  but  variances  of  this  kind 
need  not  give  rise  to  hostility  nor  preclude  conviction. 
Theologians  may  be  startled  by  new  discoveries  in 
science,  just  as  their  predecessors  were  by  the  asser- 
tions of  astronomy,  but  they  are  not  on  that  account 
entitled  to  accuse  men  of  science  of  scepticism  and 
infidelity ;  nor,  on  the  other  hand,  have  men  of  sci- 
ence any  right  to  retort  on  theologians  the  charge  of 
dogmatism  and  bigotry  because  they  are  not  prepared 
all  at  once  to  accept  the  new  deductions.  The  sceptic 
and  infidel  is  he  who  refuses  facts  and  rejects  the  con- 
clusions of  enlightened  reason ;  the  dogmatist  and 
bigot  is  he  who,  overestimating  his  own  opinions, 
undervalues  those  of  others  and  obstinately  resists  all 


22  man : 


conviction.  What  may  be  accepted  by  one  mind 
under  the  bias  of  early  training,  may  be  insufficient  to 
induce  belief  in  another  differently  trained  but  equally 
earnest  to  arive  at  the  truth.  "To  faith,"  says 
Bunsen,  "it  is  immaterial  whether  science  discover 
truth  in  a  spirit  of  scepticism  or  belief;  and  truth  has- 
been  really  found  by  both  courses,  but  never  by  dis- 
honesty or  sloth."  *  Arguments  may  prevail ;  abuse 
never  wins  over  converts.  Bad  words  never  make 
good  arguments  ;  and  we  may  rest  assured  that  he 
who  is  in  the  habit  of  using  them  is  by  no  means  in  a 
fitting  spirit  to  enter  as  a  worshiper  into  the  great 
temple  of  truth. 

The  subject  to  be  considered  in  the  following  pages 
is  one  purely  of  natural  history.  We  intend  to  in- 
quire into  the  zoological,  geographical,  ethnological, 
and  functional  relations  of  man,  which  constitute  his 
present  position  in  nature,  or  his  where  ;  we  go  on  to- 
his  historical,  geological,  and  genetic  relations,  which 
indicate  his  origin  or  his  whence;  and  knowing  his 
past  and  present,  science  is  surely  entitled  to  speculate 
with  some  degree  of  certainty  as  to  man's  future, 
which  forms  his  whither  in  the  great  cosmical  scheme 
of  continuity  and  progress.  Man  has  his  natural-his- 
tory relations  ;  of  that  there  can  be  no  gainsaying ; 
and  we  merely  seek  to  apply  to  the  determination  of 

*  Egypt's  Place  in  Universal  History,  vol.  i,  p.  1G4. 


INTRODUCTORY.  23 


these  the  same  methods  of  research  which  by  common 
consent  are  applied  to  the  determination  of  the  rela- 
tions of  other  creatures.  It  is  surely  of  some  interest 
to  man  to  know  something  of  the  origin,  antiquity, 
and  destiny  of  his  race ;  of  some  importance  to  con- 
form his  practice  in  life  to  the  relations  which  God  has 
evidently  established  between  him  and  the  rest  of 
creation.  We  have  no  intuitive  knowledge  of  these ; 
we  seek  to  know  them  ;  and  no  statement  will  satisfy 
that  fails  to  recommend  itself  to  rational  discernment. 
In  dealing  with  topics  such  as  these  we  have  nothing 
to  do  with  preconceived  opinions.  Scientific  research 
must  abide  by  scientific  methods ;  scientific  convic- 
tions must  rest  on  scientific  investigations.  We  ap- 
peal unto  Cassar,  let  us  be  judged  by  Csesar's  laws.  It 
is  true  the  subject  is  a  delicate  one,  and  requires  deli- 
cate handling ;  but  the  interests  of  truth  are  always 
best  secured  by  a  candid  utterance  of  beliefs,  and 
whatever  may  be  the  value  of  these  beliefs,  there 
should  at  least  be  no  faltering  or  hesitation  in  express- 
ing what  they  are,  or  in  stating  the  grounds  upon 
which  they  are  founded.  In  the  words  of  Bishop  Tait 
to  the  Edinburgh  Philosophical  Institution  in  1863, 
"  The  man  of  science  ought  to  go  on  honestly,  pa- 
tiently, diffidently,  observing  and  storing  up  his  obser- 
vations, and  carrying  his  reasonings  unflinchingly  to 
their  legitimate  conclusions,  convinced  that  it  would 
be   treason   at   once   to   the   dignity   of  science   and 


24  man: 


religion  if  lie  sought  to  help  either  by  swerving  ever 
bo  little  from  the  straight  rule  of  truth." 

And,  once  for  all,  let  it  be  observed,  that  if  there 
be  any  irreverence  in  dealing  with  such  questions  as 
man's  origin,  antiquity,  and  destiny,  that  irreverence 
must  rest  with  those  who  would  circumscribe  the 
range  of  reason,-  and  seek  by  unworthy  clamor  to 
deter  the  human  intellect  from  arriving:  at  some  con- 
ception,  however  faint,  of  those  laws  by  which  the 
Creator  has  chosen  to  sustain  the  phenomena  of  this 
marvellous  universe.  Man's  relations  to  external  na- 
ture, his  relations  to  his  God,  and  his  relations  to  his 
fellow-men,  determine  at  once  the  range  of  his  knowl- 
edge and  the  sum  of  his  obligations ;  and  unless  these 
relations  be  understood — and  this  is  what  science  i8 
always  striving  after — there  never  can  be  fulfilment  of 
the  duties  they  involve.  It  thus  becomes  truly  pitia- 
ble to  hear  from  certain  quarters  their  misrepresenta- 
tions of  scientific  aims  and  scientific  conclusions.  In 
fact,  it  is  easier  to  bear  than  to  hear  them ;  and  one 
can  scarcely  avoid  the  conviction  that  those  who  can 
misrepresent  the  opinions  of  others  in  order  to 
strengthen  their  own  arguments,  would  have  little 
hesitation  in  falsifying  facts  to  subserve  a  similar  pur- 
pose. They  talk  of  religion  and  infidelity.  There  is 
no  profession  of  religion  more  offensive  than  that 
which,  under  the  assumption  of  superior  piety,  at- 
tempts to  vilify  the  honest  convictions  of  others ;  the 


INTHODUCTOIIY.  20 


"  stand  aside  because  I  am  holier  than  thou  art,"  is  in 
general  as  void  of  reality  as  it  is  wanting  in  Christian 
humility  and  charity.  They  talk  of  reconciliation  be- 
tween the  utterances  of  science  and  religious  beliefs, 
as  if  true  religion  and  sound  science  ever  have  been 
or  can  be  at  variance.  If  religion  means  belief  in 
certain  dogmas  and  adherence  to  certain  ritualistic 
forms,  science  and  religion  may  often  be  in  conflict ; 
but  if,  on  the  other  hand,  the  exercise  of  religion  con- 
sists in  search  after  truth,  regard  to  the  relations  in 
which  we  tire  placed  to  the  universe,  and  devotion  to 
the  Great  Author  of  all,  then  science  and  religion  are 
at  one,  and  need  no  reconciliation. 

We  are  anxious  at  the  outset  to  place  the  ques- 
tion on  a  fair  footing  as  regards  its  religious  aspects, 
because  men  of  science  have  hitherto  been  too  much 
deterred  from  giving  expression  to  their  opinions 
through  fear  of  incurring  accusations  of  scepticism  and 
infidelity.  There  is  nothing  more  frequent  than  de- 
nunciations from  the  pulpit  and  platform  against  the 
tendencies  of  modern  science  by  men  who  are  not 
only  ignorant  of  the  rudiments  of  science,  but  who 
have  bound  themselves  by  creeds  and  formulas  before 
their  minds  were  matured  enough,  or  their  knowledge 
sufficient  to  discriminate  between  the  essentials  and 
non-essentials  of  these  restrictions.  And  here  it  may 
be  remarked,  once  for  all,  that  no  man  who  has  sub- 
scribed to  creeds  and  formulas,  whether  in  theology 


26  MAN 


or  philosophy,  can  be  an  unbiassed  investigator  of  the 
truth,  or  an  unprejudiced  judge  of  the  opinions  of 
others.  His  sworn  preconceptions  warp  his  discern- 
ment ;  adherence  to  his  sect  or  party  engenders  intol- 
erance to  the  honest  convictions  of  other  inquirers. 
Beliefs  we  may  and  must  have,  but  a  belief  to  be 
changed  with  new  and  advancing  knowledge  impedes 
no  progress,  while  a  creed  subscribed  to  as  ultimate 
truth,  and  sworn  to  be  defended,  not  only  puts  a  bar 
to  further  research,  but  as  a  consequence  throws  the 
odium  of  distrust  on  all  that  may  seem  to  oppose  it. 
Even  where  such  odium  cannot  deter,  it  annoys  and 
irritates:  hence  the  frequent  unwillingness  of  men  of 
science  to  come  prominently  forward  with  the  avowal 
of  their  beliefs.  It  is  time  this  delicacy  were  thrown 
aside,  and  such  theologians  plainly  told  that  the  scep- 
ticism and  infidelity — if  scepticism  and  infidelity  there 
be — lies  all  on  their  own  side.  There  is  no  scepticism 
bo  offensive  as  that  which  doubts  the  facts  of  honest 
and  careful  observation  ;  no  infidelity  so  gross  as  that 
which  disbelieves  the  deductions  of  competent  and 
unbiassed  judgments.  There  can  be  no  reverence 
more  sacred  than  that  which  springs  from  a  knowledge 
of  God's  workings  in  nature  ;  no  religion  more  sincere 
than  that  which  flows  from  the  enlightened  under- 
standing of  the  methods  and  laws  of  the  Creator. 
The  more  intimate  our  acquaintance  with  the  works 
of  God,  the  stronger  our  convictions  of  his  power, 


INTRODUCTORY.  27 


wisdom,  and  iroodness.  The  holiest  beliefs  are  those 
founded  on  informed  reason ;  all  besides  is  little  better 
than  superstition  and  mechanical  formality.  It  is  of 
no  use,  then,  when  new  questions  like  the  present  are 
mooted,  for  certain  minds  to  work  themselves  into  a 
frenzy  of  ' '  orthodoxy, "  to  savagely  smear  themselves- 
with  theological  war-paint,  and  raise  the  old  war- 
whoop  of  the  Bible  in  danger.  These  questions, 
whatever  they  may  be,  will  be  agitated  and  discussed, 
and  men's  convictions  will  ultimately  take  their  hue 
from  that  which  most  commends  itself  to  their  under- 
standing. 

Be  it  then  clearly  understood  that  in  investigating 
the  natural-history  relations  of  man,  we  are  dealing 
with  a  question  of  science,  and  striving  to  ascertain 
what  light  zoology,  ethnology,  geology,  and  the  allied 
sciences,  can  throw  upon  its  origin,  antiquity,  and  des- 
tiny. We  are  merely  seeking  to  apply  to  man  the 
same  methods  of  research  that  are  applied  to  the 
natural-history  relations  of  other  animals.  What  is 
the  place  he  holds  in  the  zoological  scale  ?  what  is  his 
distribution  over  the  earth's  surface  ?  in  what  varieties 
does  he  appear  ?  what  are  the  functional  duties  he  has 
to  perform  ?  how  long  does  he  seem  to  have  tenanted 
this  world  ?  and,  looking  at  his  past  and  present  rela- 
tions, what  seems  likely  to  be  the  future  destination  of 
his  species  ?  Such  are  the  problems  which  man's  posi- 
tion naturally  involves  ;  such  are  the  questions  to  which 


28  MAN 


science  is  called  upon  to  furnish  a  rational  reply. 
Every  assertion  must  be  deduced  from  ascertained 
facts,  and  as  such  is  a  matter  of  probation  which  any 
qualified  intellect  can  determine  for  itself.  There  is 
no  mystery  in  scientific  methods  ;  nothing  beyond  the 
comprehension  of  honest  and  patient  endeavor;  nothing 
that  earnest  minds  may  not  receive,  and  honest  words 
fail  to  convey ;  and  if  it  were  otherwise,  the  bulk  of 
scientific  research  would  be  in  vain,  and  its  dissemina- 
tion hopeless.  In  the  present  case  we  shall  endeavor 
to  deal  with  matters  of  fact,  and  content  ourselves 
with  simply  indicating  the  necessary  deduction  ;  and 
if  this  should  recommend  itself  to  reason,  it  becomes  a 
truth,  a  belief,  as  sacred  as  any  other  that  may  be  en- 
tertained, and  as  such  deserving  the  respectful  con- 
sideration even  of  those  who  may  hold  a  contrary 
opinion.  If  it  be  truth  and  rational  belief,  no  amount 
of  opposition,  from  whatever  quarter,  cau  prevent  its 
ultimate  reception.  As  astronomy  triumphed  over  the 
earlier  notions  respecting  the  earth's  planetary  relations, 
and  geology  over  the  views  of  its  limited  antiquity,  so 
will  science,  so  long  as  it  is  true  to  right  methods,  estab- 
lish ere  long  more  rational  beliefs  as  to  the  origin,  anti- 
quity, and  progressive  ascension  of  mankind.  In  the 
mean  time  the  battle  has  to  be  fought  against  preju- 
dices and  preconceptions ;  but  the  warfare  will  the 
sooner  terminate  the  sooner  that  science  gives  unmis- 
takable utterance  to   its  convictions,  and  hurls  back 


INTRODUCTORY.  29 


upon  its  opponents  the  unworthy  weapons  of  their  un- 
availing attacks. 

As  already  mentioned,  our  object  in  the  following 
pages  is  to  discover  what  light  modern  science  can 
throw  on  the  relations  which  man  holds  to  the  rest  of 
the  universe.  What  the  position,  physical  and  intel- 
lectual, he  now  occupies?  What  the  functions  he  has 
to  perform  ?  How  or  in  what  manner  does  he  appear 
to  have  originated?  What,  geologically  speaking, 
may  be  the  measure  of  his  antiquity  ?  and  what,  de- 
ductively from  the  history  of  the  past,  seems  to  be  the- 
nature  of  the  course  that  lies  before  him  ?  These  are 
clearly  legitimate  subjects  of  research  ;  and  so  long  as 
science  abides  by  scientific  methods,  she  is  entitled  to  a 
fair  hearing  and  respectful  consideration.  The  data  may 
be  few  and  doubtful,  and  the  results  uncertain,  still,  if 
they  have  been  earnestly  sought  after  and  honestly  in- 
terpreted, they  are  not  to  be  despised.  All  knowledge 
is  merely  relative,  and  the  more  cordial  the  reception 
of  the  narrow  information  of  to-day,  the  surer  and 
speedier  the  attainment  of  the  wider  knowledge  of  to- 
morrow. Where  the  conclusions  are  sufficient  to  pro- 
duce conviction,  let  the  conviction  be  avowed ;  and 
where  failing  to  induce  belief,  let  them  be  received  at 
least  as  well-meant  and  honest  endeavors. 

Nor  is  the  investigation  of  man's  where,  whence, 
and  whither  without  its  importance  to  other  subjects 
of  scientific  research.      Archaeology,  ethnology,  and 


3  0  MAN 


history  will  derive  confirmation  or  correction  according 
to  the  conclusions  arrived  at ;  and  much  in  the  rise 
and  progress  of  our  race  which  is  now  irreconcileable 
under  the  ordinary  views  of  chronology,  may  become 
easy  of  explanation  under  the  establishment  of  a 
higher  antiquity.  Where  history  ceases,  geology  may 
assist  the  archaeologist  in  the  determination  of  pri- 
meval remains ;  and  where  ethnology  is  puzzled  in 
tracing  connections,  paloaontological  discovery  may 
sometimes  contribute  the  necessary  information.  The 
establishment  of  a  higher  antiquity  for  the  human  race, 
and  of  an  ascent  from  lower  to  hio-her  varieties,  would 
give  ample  scope  to  views  on  civilization,  the  develop- 
ment of  new  nationalities,  languages,  and  religions, 
and  lead  to  more  satisfactory  results  in  ethnology  and 
history.  Under  a  chronology  of  six  or  seven  thousand 
years  the  rise  and  progress  of  the  human  race,  with  all 
its  varieties,  families,  and  nationalities — with  all  its 
languages,  customs,  and  religions,  seem  impossible, 
perplexing,  and  confusing ;  under  a  wider  range  of 
i  time,  the  whole  evolution  becomes  natural,  compre- 
hensible, and  in  accordance  with  what  is  now  taking 
place  around  us.  On  these  grounds,  even  if  on  no 
other,  the  subject  would  be  worthy  of  research,  and 
the  results  entitled  to  a  fair  and  candid  consideration. 
We  have  said  in  accordance  with  what  is  now  taking 
place  around  us ;  for,  be  it  observed,  there  would  be 
an  end  to  all  reasoning  regarding  either  past  or  future 


INTRODUCTORY.  31 


if  we  did  not  believe  in  the  general  harmony,  the  even 
uniformity  and  permanence  of  the  methods  of  crea- 
tion. This  belief  is  all  essential  to  our  inquiry  ;  it  lies, 
in  fact,  at  the  foundation  of  all  satisfactory  reasoning 
respecting  the  appointments  of  the  universe,  and 
without  it  we  cannot  proceed  a  single  step  in  security. 
"  It  is  true,"  says  a  recent  writer,*  "  that  this  view  of 
the  government  of  the  universe  does  not  accord  with 
the  feelings  of  those  who  desire  to  have  their  atten- 
tion  directed  in  a  definite  manner  to  the  repeated  and 
systematic  personal  intervention  of  a  Divine  Power, 
and  who  cannot  recognize  the  power  without  being 
able  to  trace  what  is  called  the  finger  or  the  hand  of 
the  Creator  in  all  his  works.  In  a  certain  sense, 
no  doubt,  every  contrivance,  or  in  other  words,  every 
arrangement  in  the  universe  mav  be  made  to  yield 
evidence  of  this.  But  we  would  venture  to  suggest 
that  the  noblest  view  of  creation,  and  a  knowledge  of 
the  real  greatness  0f  the  Creator,  can  onlv  be  learned 
by  those  who  seek  to  discover  the  much  higher  and 
nobler  intelligence  that  designed  the  whole  system. 
That  there  should  be  an  interfering  hand  is  a  mark 
of  weakness  in  the  original  plan.  If  the  structure  be 
perfect,  interference  is  not  necessary."  And  again, 
"All  true  science  has  for  its  object  not  only  the 
observation  of  facts,  but  the  investigation  of  methods 

*  Physical  Geography,  by  Professor  Ansted,  pp.  442-3  ;  1867. 


32  man : 


and  the  discovery  of  laws.  These  laws  can  only  be 
binding  and  unalterable  because  they  cannot  be 
changed  with  advantage;  in  other  words,  because 
they  are  perfect,  as  being  instituted  by  One  who  is 
himself  perfect." 

But,  independently  of  scientific  considerations, 
archseological  or  ethnological,  the  subject  has  most 
direct  and  important  practical  bearings.  Nations, 
like  individuals,  have  their  idiosyncracies  and  apti- 
tudes. As  one  man  has  a  genius  for  poetry  and 
painting,  and  another  a  talent  for  mathematics  and 
mechanics ;  so  one  race  has  an  aptitude  for  adventure 
and  commerce,  and  another  for  the  industrial  arts; 
while  a  third  may  be  incapable  of  rising  beyond  the 
lowest  stages  of  nomadic  existence.  Clearly  such 
races  cannot  be  dealt  with  alike,  and  the  more  we 
know  of  national  characteristics  the  better  will  we  be 
prepared  to  direct  our  energies  and  shape  our  rela- 
tions towards  them.  It  is  greatly  for  want  of  this 
knowledge  that  missionary  and  ameliorating  schemes 
so  often  fail  in  their  efforts,  and  that  nation  misunder- 
standing the  character  of  nation  drifts  insensibly  into 
contention  and  warfare.  It  is  also  for  want  of  this 
knowledge  that  the  civilization  and  amalgamation  of 
certain  races  has  been  tried  in  vain,  and  that  the 
higher  race  has  not  unfrequently  been  absorbed  into 
and  debased  by  that  which  it  sought  to  improve.  In 
fine,  the  study  of  man— call  it  Ethnology,  Anthro- 


INTEODUCTOHY.  33 


pology,  or  what  you  will — is  fraught  with  innumera- 
ble utilities ;  and  whatever  leads  to  more  rational 
views  of  the  duties  and  relations  of  race  to  race,  and 
of  nation  to  nation,  is  deserving  of  our  warmest  en- 
couragement. 

To' some  the  treatment  of  the  subject,  within  the 
limits  I  have  assigned  to  myself,  may  seem  cursory 
and  inexhaustive ;  but  to  have  exceeded  these  limits 
would  have  been  to  run  the  risk  of  defeating  my 
object.  It  is  an  old  saying  that  a  big  book  is  a  great 
evil ;  and  an  elaborate  treatise  on  a  matter  as  yet  so 
little  familiar  might  have  deterred  from  rather  than 
excited  to  its  study  and  comprehension.  What 
I  have  aimed  at  is  an  outline  rather  than  an  array  of 
details;  a  review  for  the  general  reader,  and  not  an 
exhaustive  argument  for  the  man  of  science  ;  a  thing 
rather  suggestive  of  what  the  question  involves  than 
instructive  of  truths  already  arrived  at.  My  object 
has  been  to  write  as  I  would  reason  in  conversation 
with  a  friend,  earnestly  and  unreservedly ;  convinced 
that  subjects  of  this  kind  will  never  be  fully  under- 
stood nor  generally  accepted  till  they  are  dealt  with  as 
great  truths,  which  it  is  the  business  of  every  educated 
mind  to  endeavor  to  comprehend,  and  the  duty  of 
every  man  to  explain  to  his  less-informed  neighbor. 
Where  I  have  failed  in  disarming  opposition,  my  plain- 
ness and  directness  of  speech  may  prevent  misrepre- 
sentation ;  and  where  I  have  not  been  successful  in 


o 
O 


34  MAW 


convincing,  I  trust  at  least  that  doubt  has  been 
awakened  and  a  desire  excited  for  fuller  and  more 
detailed  information.  And  this,  in  matters  at  variance 
with  olden  opinion,,  is  often  all  that  can,  at  the  outset, 
be  attained.  Men  are  in  general  slow  to  accept  new 
views,  and  the  first  and  most  hopeful  step  toward  this 
end  is  to  induce  them  to  question  the  soundness  of 
their  previous  convictions. 


WHERE  ? 


ZOOLOGICAL  RELATIONS. 

Community  of  Life-condition — Structural  affinity  to  other  Ani- 
mals—Ascent through  Adaptive  Modification— Principle  of 
Variation  ever  operative — Mental  affinity  to  other  Animals — 
Man  Improvable  and  Progressive— Theory  of  Spiritual  Com- 
munity of  Life— Our  First  Proposition. 

Man's  connection  with  the  great  scheme  of  ani- 
mated nature  is  intimate  and  inseparable.  The  phy- 
sical conditions  under  which  life  exists  are  the  same 
to  him  as  to  other  animals.  Air,  land,  and  water, 
heat,  light,  and  moisture,  are  as  essential  to  him  as  to 
the  other  forms  and  grades  of  vitality.  He  originates 
like  other  animals,  embryologically  passes  through  the 
same  stages,  and  when  launched  on  the  field  of  inde- 
pendent  being  is  subjected  to  the  same  functional 
round,  and  to  the  same  struggle  for  existence.  Life, 
growth,  reproduction,  and  decay,  are  phases  of  being 
characteristic  of  all  that  lives.  There  may  be  differ- 
ences in  decree,  as  there  are  differences  in  form  and 
function,  but  there  is  no  exemption  from  these  condi- 
tions and  requirements.  Man  suffers  thirst  and  hun- 
ger, heat  and  cold,  pain  and  pleasure,   much  as  other 


38  man : 


animals  do.  If  lie  is  stronger  than  some,  he  is  weaker 
than  others  ;  if  in  some  of  his  senses  he  excels  many, 
in  this  respect  also  he  is  inferior  to  others,  and  if  in 
his  general  adaptations  he  is  far  superior,  there  are 
special  instances  in  which  he  is  greatly  inferior.  As  a 
mere  animal,  then,  man,  like  other  animals,  has  his 
place  in  nature.  It  may  he  higher,  hut  this  is  differ- 
ence in  degree,  not  difference  in  land ;  and  it  would 
be  setting  aside  all  philosophy  in  science  to  shrink 
from  applying  to  him  the  same  methods  of  research 
that  are  applied  to  the  other  forms  that  constitute 
with  him  the  great  brotherhood  of  vitality. 

And  yet,  influenced  by  preconceptions  as  to  man's 
origin  and  destiny,  there  are  zoologists  who  would  as- 
sign to  the  human  species  a  place  apart,  and  altoge- 
ther of  its  own  kind,  in  then-  schemes  of  classification, 
forgetful  that  the  essentials  of  existence  are  the  same 
to  man  as  to  other  living  beings,  and  forgetful  also 
that  almost  all  the  great  physiological  laws  and  thera- 
peutic considerations  of  modern  times  have  been  ar- 
rived at,  more  perhaps  from  the  investigation  of  vital 
phenomena  in  the  lower  animals  than  from  their  study 
in  the  human  race.  The  truth  is,  the  immense  pro- 
gress recently  made  in  biological  science  has  arisen 
chiefly  from  researches  among  the  lower  forms  of 
vitality,  and  any  attempt  to  separate  man  from  the 
general  scheme  of  life  is  stultified  at  once  and  alto- 
gether, apart   from   scientific    considerations,  by  the 


HIS  ZOOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.  39 


practical  connection  upon  which  anatomy  and  medi- 
cine are  every  day  founding  their  procedure.  All  our 
views  of  comparative  anatomy,  of  respiration,  circu- 
lation of  the  blood,  muscular  and  nervous  action,  em- 
bryology, and  the  like,  are  based  upon  the  idea  of 
oneness  in  the  vital  plan  ;  and  surely  we  cannot  con- 
sistently separate  in  theory  what  the  necessities  of  our 
everyda3r  existence  compel  us  to  combine  in  practice.* 
If,  then,  we  are  compelled  to  regard  man  as  belong- 
ing to  the  same  brotherhood  of  life,  we  cannot,  in 
dealing  with  his  relations,  adopt  other  methods  of  re- 
search or  follow  any  other  than  the  ordinary  line  of 

*  This  oneness  of  plan,  and  its  bearings  on  physiology  and  ther- 
apeutics, are  well  brought  out  in  the  following  passage  from  the 
Natural  History  of  the  European  Seas,  by  Edward  Forbes  and 
Godwin  Austen  :  "A  great  part  of  the  animals  that  live  beneath 
the  waters  consists  of  beings  in  a  manner  rudimentary — creatures 
exhibiting  the  elements  of  higher  creatures,  living  analyses  of 
higher  organized  compounds,  the  first  draught  of  sketches  after- 
ward finished,  the  framework,  as  it  were,  of  many-wheeled  ma- 
chines. By  an  examination  and  study  of  them  we  get  a  clearer 
conception  of  the  nature,  of  the  structures  which,  in  combination, 
constitute  the  complicated  bodies  of  vertebrated  animals,  and  in 
the  end  are  enabled  to  throw  light  upon  the  organization  of  man 
himself,  learning  thereby  much  concerning  the  wonderful  con- 
struction of  the  miscrocosm,  and  at  the  same  time,  through  our 
better  knowledge  of  the  nature  and  capabilities  of  our  organization, 
acquiring  a  lesser  though  more  practical  gain  in  the  placing  of  the 
science  of  medicine  on  a  surer  and  sounder  foundation.  The 
day  has  gone  by  when  a  medical  student  was  taught  the  anatomy 
and  physiology  of  man,  with  little  reference  to  that  of  inferior 
beings." 


40  man : 


biological  argument.  "  But  it  is  not  upon  structural 
similarity  or  difference  alone,"  says  the  most  expe- 
rienced of  living  naturalists,*  "  that  the  relations  be- 
tween man  and  animals  have  to  be  considered.  The 
psychological  history  of  animals  shows  that  as  man  is 
related  to  animals  by  the  plan  of  his  structure,  so  are 
these  related  to  him  by  the  character  of  those  very 
faculties  which  are  so  transcendant  in  man  as  to  point 
at  first  to  the  necessity  of  disclaimino-  for  him  com- 
pletely  any  relationship  with  the  animal  kingdom. 
Yet  the  natural  history  of  animals  is  by  no  means 
completed  after  the  somatic  side  of  their  nature  has 
been  thoroughly  investigated  ;  for  they  too  have  a 
psychological  individuality  which,  though  less  studied, 
is  nevertheless  the  connecting  link  between  them  and 
man.  I  cannot  therefore  agree  with  those  authors 
who  would  disconnect  mankind  from  the  animal 
kingdom,  and  establish  a  distinct  kingdom  for  man 
alone." 

The  slightest  glance  at  the  vital  world  is  sufficient 
to  convince  that  there  is  a  great  structural  plan  to 
which  the  whole  of  its  component  members  are  con- 
formed, and  that  this  plan  is  applicable  alike  to  the 
extinct  forms  revealed  by  geology  and  to  those  still 
existing.       One  phase  of  this  plan  belongs  to  the  glo- 


*  Essay    on  Classification.     By  Professor  Agassiz.     London, 
1859. 


HIS  ZOOLOGICAL  KELATIONS.  41 


bular  or  Protozoan  forms,  another  to  the  rayed  or  Ra- 
diate forms,  a  third  to  the  jointed  or  Articulate 
forms,  a  fourth  to  the  soft-bodied  or  Mollusean 
forms,  and  a  fifth  to  the  backboned  or  Vertebrate. 
Whether  these  subdivisions  are  of  equal  zoological 
value  we  will  not  stop  to  inquire.  It  is  enough  for 
our  present  purpose  to  know  that  they  form  portions 
of  the  same  biological  scheme,  and  are  bound  toge- 
ther in  plan  by  certain  structural  characteristics  as 
well  as  by  certain  functional  performances  ;  by  struc- 
tural plan  in  the  possession  of  corresponding  organic 
parts,  and  by  functional  duty  in  the  work  of  assimi- 
lation, growth,  reproduction,  and  other  processes  pe- 
culiar to  vitality.  As  man  belongs  to  the  highest,  or 
Vertebrate  section,  it  is  with  this  that  we  have  more  es- 
pecially to  do  ;  though  we  must  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact 
that  section  is  connected  with  section  by  affinities  which 
become  closer  and  closer  as  we  ascend  from  the  lower 
to  the  higher  and  more  specially  organized,  and  that 
all  really  and  truly  belong  to  one  great  but  multiform 
plan.  Zoologically,  indeed,  it  would  not  be  diffi- 
cult, were  this  the  proper  place,  to  show  that  the 
Radiate  is  but  a  permanent  development  of  the  tem- 
porary functional  form  of  the  Globular  ;  the  Articulate 
of  the  Radiate ;  the  Mollusean  a  more  concentrated 
expression  of  all  three  ;  and  the  Vertebrate  a  higher 
specialisation  of  the  Mollusean  ;  while  each  section  is 
linked  to  the  other  by  intermediate  forms  which  are 


42  man : 


either  still   existing  or  belong  to   bygone  geological 
periods. 

Man's  structural  connection  with  the  vertebrate 
plan  is  inseparable ;  and  while  he  is  admittedly  the 
highest  form  in  the  scale  of  created  being,  yet  he  is 
physically  possessed  of  nothing  that  is  not  typified 
and  existing  in  degree  in  the  lower  animals.  Homo 
logons  parts  of  the  vertebrate  skeleton  are  common  to 
fish,  reptile,  bird,  and  mammal — the  lin  to  .swim,  the 
limb  to  creep,  the  wing  to  fry,  and  the  hand  to  grasp. 
As  we  ascend  the  mammalian  scale,  the  resemblance 
becomes  closer  and  closer,  till  at  last,  in  man  and  the 
forms  immediately  below  him,  we  find  organ  for  or- 
gan, bone  for  bone,  muscle  for  muscle,  and  nerve  for 
nerve — the  resemblances,  in  fine,  Tar  more  striking 
than  the  differences.  There  may  be  a  process  on  a 
bone  of  the  one  more  prominent  than  the  process  on 
the  corresponding  bone  of  the  other ;  or  there  may 
be  a  section  of  the  brain  of  the  one  less  conspicuous 
than  that  in  the  brain  of  the  other  ;  but  no  honest  and 
competent  anatomist  refuses  on  grounds  like  these  to 
admit  the  identity  of  parts  or  the  oneness  of  the  plan 
upon  which  both  are  constructed.*      Differences  there 

*  "Not  being  able,"  says  the  most  distinguished  of  British  ana- 
tomists, "  to  appreciate  or  conceive  of  the  distinctness  between 
the  psychical  phenomena  of  a  chimpanzee  and  of  a  Uoschisman,  or 
of  an  Aztec,  -with  arrested  brain-growth,  as  being  of  a  nature  so 
essential  as  to  preclude  a  comparison  between  them,  or  as  being 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  43 


undoubtedly  are,  but  these  are  merely  differences  in 
degree,  modifications  of  parts  common  to  the  whole 
rather  than  the  creation  or  introduction  of  what  is 
new  and  essentially  original  Comparing  the  various 
orders  and  families  of  the  vertebrate  class,  the  lower 
with  the  higher,  and  the  higher  with  those  next  above 
them,  it  seems  that  adaptive  modifications,  rather  than 
independent  and  repeated  creations,  have  been  the 
governing  method  in  structural  advancement.  As 
a  skilful  engineer  models  the  primal  idea  of  the 
steam  engine  so  as  to  adapt  it  for  stationary,  locomo- 
tive, or  marine  purposes,  and  this  without  inventing 
a  new  machine,  so  the  original  conception  of  the  ver- 
tebrate skeleton  is  merely  modified  to  suit  it  for  the 
respective  requirements  of  the  fish,  the  reptile,  the 
bird,  and  the  mammal.  And  so  in  like  manner  it 
happens  with  the  ordinal  and  generic  differences  that 
takes  place  within  the  respective  classes ;  they  are 
modifications  of  existing  parts  rather  than   the  cre- 


other  than  a  difference  in  degree,  I  cannot  shut  my  eyes  to  the 
significance  of  that,  all-pervading  similitude  of  structure— every 
tooth,  every  bone,  strictly  homologous — which  makes  the  deter- 
mination of  the  difference  between  homo  (man)  and  pithecus 
(monkey)  the  anatomists' difficulty.1'— (Professor  Owen  "On  the 
Characters,  etc.,  of  the  Class  Mammalia,"  in  the  Journal  of  the 
Linnami  Society  for  1857.)  And  to  the  same  effect  the  great 
Swedish  naturalist  admitted,  now  more  than  a  century  ago, 
"Nullum  characterem  adhuc  eruere  potui,  unde  homo  a  simia 
internoscatur." — (Linnams,  Fauna  Suecica.) 


44  man : 


ation  of  new  ones.  Take,  for  example,  the  mamma- 
lian neck,  which  in  all  the  orders  consists  of  seven 
vertebral  pieces.  If  this  has  to  be  lengthened  for 
functional  purposes,  as  in  the  camel  and  giraffe,  the 
result  is  accomplished  not  by  the  insertion  of  addi- 
tional vertebrae,  but  simply  by  a  lengthening  of  each 
of  the  normal  seven.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  it  has  to 
be  shortened,  as  in  the  case  of  man,  this  is  done  not 
by  the  abstraction  of  one  or  more  pieces,  but  simply 
by  the  compression  of  each  of  the  normal  number. 
Or  take  the  mammalian  fore-limb,  with  its  shoulder- 
blade,  arm-bone,  forearm-bones,  wrist-bones,  and 
fingers.  In  this  organ,  whether  it  be  the  hand  of 
man  to  manipulate,  the  claws  of  the  tiger  to  tear,  the 
foot  of  the  antelope  to  spring,  the  hoof  of  the  horse 
to  ran,  the  paddle  of  the  whale  to  swim,  of  the  wing 
of  the  bat  to  fly,  it  is  clear  that  all  are  but  modifica- 
tions of  the  same  primal  parts  ;  alterations  for  func- 
tional purposes,  and  not  the  creation  of  new  and  dif- 
ferent members.  As  with  the  fore-limb,  so  with  other 
organs.  The  plan  upon  which  the  mammalian  type 
has  been  diversified  so  as  to  produce  its  nnmerous  or- 
ders, genera,  and  species,  has  been,  the  modification 
of  component  parts,  and  not  the  creation  of  essen- 
tially new  ones.  And  as  with  the  mammalian,  so 
with  the  other  types  that  constitute  the  great  scheme 
of  life.  In  each,  the  respective  members  are  but  mo- 
difications  of  the  original    type-forms,  just  as  those 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    KELATIONS.  45 


type-forms  themselves  are  modifications    of  a  wider 
and    more    comprehensive  plan. 

It  is  true  that  modification  of  any  important  organ 
implies  a  corresponding  modification  in  all  the  other 
organs  which  constitute  the  entirety  of  any  living  be- 
ing. This  is  the  great  physiological  doctrine  of  the 
"co-relation  of  parts"  by  which,  for  instance,  the 
simpler  stomach  and  shorter  intestines  of  the  carni- 
vore is  co-adapted  to  the  trenching  tooth  and  seizing 
fore-limb,  and  the  more  complicated  stomach  and 
longer  intestines  of  the  ruminant  co-adapted  to  the 
grinding  tooth  and  harmless  fore  foot.  No  important 
modification,  then,  can  take  place  in  one  member 
without  affecting  the  others,  and  hence  the  numerous 
forms  in  nature  according  to  the  function  to  be  per- 
formed and  the  element  to  be  occupied.*  But  differ- 
ence in  form  and  function  does  not  necessarily  imply 
a  separate  origin  ;  and  seeing  the  gradual  shading  of 
form  into  form  in  nature,  it  is  easier,  and  indeed  more 
rational  to  believe  in  modification  of  original  type- 
forms  than  in  the  creation  of  new  forms  for  every 
slight  variation  in  habits  and  modes  of  life  which  the 

*  "Every  organized  being,"  says  Cuvier,  "forms  a  whole,  a 
single  circumscribed  system,  the  parts  of  which  mutually  corres- 
pond and  concur  to  the  same  definite  action  by  a  reciprocal  reac- 
tion. None  of  these  parts  can  change  without  the  others  also 
changing,  and  consequently  each  part,  taken  separately,  indicates 
and  gives  all  the  others." 


46  man : 


physical  forces  of  the  universe  are  ever  producing. 
As  external  conditions  are  ever  changing  under  the 
operation  of  physical  forces,  and  this  in  conformity  to 
established  laws,  so  we  may  rest  assured  that  varia- 
tions in  life-forms  are  equally  the  orderly  results  of 
secondary  causation,  though  we  may  not  in  the  present 
state  of  knowledge  be  able  to  indicate  either  the  time 
when  or  the  mode  in  which  such  causation  may  ope- 
rate. Every  anatomist,  every  breeder  of  animals,  and 
every  propagator  of  plants,  knows  that  variations  do 
take  place ;  every  palaeontologist  and  fossil-collector 
perceives  that  similar  variations  have  taken  place ; 
but  neither  in  the  existing  nor  in  the  extinct  has  the 
process  been  traced  far  enough,  nor  have  sufficient 
data  been  accumulated,  to  enable  science  to  determine 
the  full  efficiency  of  this  principle  as  a  cause  of  spe- 
cific and  generic  distinctions. 

But  though  observation  has  not  yet  been  enabled  to 
complete  the  argument,  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the 
existence  of  the  principle  of  variation,  or  of  the  im- 
portant part  it  plays  in  the  modification  of  life-forms  ; 
and  we  may  safely  accept  it  as  one  of  the  main  fac- 
tors in  the  law  of  biological  development.  Variation 
takes  place  so  slowly,  and  by  stages  so  minute,  that 
ages  may  pass  before  it  rises  into  what  we  are  in  the 
habit  of  calling  "specific"  distinctions;  and  even 
where  it  may  have  culminated  in  species,  observation 
has  been  so  recent  and  so  imperfect  that  if  no  argu- 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  47 


ment  can  be  drawn  from  this  source  in  favor  of  the 
doctrine  of  development,  none,  on  the  other  hand, 
can  be  honestly  advanced  against  it.  If  then  there  be 
a  plan  of  diversity  by  modification  running  throughout 
the  whole  of  nature,  no  matter  what  the  causes,  man, 
so  far  as  his  animal  structure  is  concerned,  can  claim 
no  exemption.  He  may  stand  higher,  but  his  place 
is  one  merely  of  degree  ;  and  if  he  possesses  any  gift 
not  participated  in  by  his  fellow- animals,  it  is  to  this 
specialisation,  and  not  to  his  mere  structural  adapta- 
tions, that  we  must  look  for  the  difference  that  sub- 
sists between  him  and  the  rest  of  vitality.  However 
averse  some  may  be  to  accept  this  process  of  modifica- 
tion, as  applicable  to  the  evolution  of  the  human  race, 
there  can  be  no  question,  at  all  events,  that  whatever 
the  process,  the  same  structural  idea  was  in  the  Crea- 
tive Mind  in  the  formation  of  man  as  in  the  formation 
of  other  mammals,  and  more  especially  as  in  the  pro- 
duction of  those  that  stand  next  beneath  him  in  the 
scale  of  zoological  advancement.  Nor  be  it  forgotten 
that  every  progressive  modification  implies  the  addi- 
tion of  something  new — the  introduction  through  se- 
condary processes,  and  in  conformity  with  a  great 
aboriginal  plan,  of  higher  adaptations,  and  conse- 
quently of  higher  functional  performances.  In  fact,  the 
idea  of  development  involves  that  of  super-addition, 
no  matter  by  what  process  the  super-addition  may  be 
effected,  and  it  is  the  oversight  of  this  truth  which  ap- 


48  man : 


parently  leads  us  to  the  misconception  of  the  theory 
of  vital  progression.  Call  it  progressive  modification, 
advancement,  development,  or  what  you  will,  there 
is  clearly  at  each  successive  stage  something  new 
evolved  ;  and  as  all  physical  means  and  processes  are 
but  implements  of  the  Divine  will,  the  new  evolution 
must,  in  each  case,  be  accepted  as  tantamount  to  a 
new  creation. 

If  it  should  be  argued,  as  it  is  sometimes  done,  that 
it  would  be  as  easy  for  the  Divine  Author  of  the 
universe  to  create  a  form  of  new  as  to  modify  the 
structure  of  a  pre-existing  one,  then  to  such  an  argu- 
ment there  can  be  only  one  answer.  No  one  doubts 
it ;  no  one  having  enlightened  conceptions  of  a  Crea- 
tor ever  doubted  it.  But  the  question  is  not  one  of 
possibility  but  of  probability.  We  perceive  a  certain 
order  and  certain  method  in  nature  ;  we  see  that  un 
der  new  conditions  certain  variations  do  take  place  in 
vegetable  and  animal  structures  ;  and  by  an  irresist- 
ible law  of  our  intellect,  we  associate  the  variations 
with  the  conditions  in  the  way  of  cause  and  effect.  Of 
such  a  method  we  can  form  some  notion,  and  bring  it 
within  the  realm  of  reason  ;  of  any  other  plan,  how- 
ever it  may  be  received,  we  can  form  no  rational  con- 
ception. Again,  should  it  be  advanced,  as  is  some- 
times done,  that  the  creation  of  a  monad  is  as  incom- 
prehensible as  that  of  a  man,  then  to  this  we  decidedly 
answer,  No.      To  argue  otherwise  were  to  maintain 


HIS  ZOOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.  49 


that  the  comprehension  of  a  complex  machine,  com- 
posed of  many  wheels  and  levers,  were  as  easy  as  the 
understanding  of  a  single  wheel  or  of  a  single  lever. 
Scientific   research    on  the  ^.cell-growth   of  vegetable 
and  animal  structures  has  made  us  acquainted,  in  some 
measure,  with  the  development  of  these  primary  or- 
ganisms, and  how  they  are  influenced  by  heat,  light, 
electricity,    and  other  forces.       We  can   form  some 
conception,  however  faint,  of  the  simple  uni-cellular 
germ,  under  the  operation  of  these  subtle  forces  ;  but 
of  the  complex  structure  of  man  by  a  similarly  direct 
process,  the  human  reason  is  utterly  unable  to  con- 
ceive.    We  can  follow,  however,  the  successive  stages 
of  ascent,  under  a  plan   of  development,  and  if  we 
cannot  fully  explain \  the  cause,  we   can   indicate  at 
least  the  process  through  whichf  the  modification  was 
effected.       And   this,   be   it   observed,   is   something 
gained— a  step,  however  short,  toward    the  solution 
of  the  problem  of  vital  development.      We  say  vital 
development,  for  in  this  place  we  are  not  called  upon 
to  offer  any  opinion  as  to  the  origin  of  life,  which 
may  eve]-  lie  darkly  and  far  beyond  the  discrimination 
of  science.     Nor  are  we,  in  associating  the  manifesta- 
tions of  life  with  the  operation  of  external  forces,  re- 
quired to  discuss  the  nature  of  the  so-called  vital  force 
as  distinct  from  other  forces,  though  we  cannot  help 
remarking  that  hitherto  too  broad  a  line  of  demarca- 
tion has  been  drawn  between  it  and  the  other  operat- 
4 


50  man : 


ing  forces  of  the  universe.  Whatever  the  vital  force 
may  be,  it  never  manifests  itself  save  in  connection 
with,  or  under  the  operation  of,  other  forces.  If  it  be 
something  per  se,  it  clearly  can  neither  assert  its  pres- 
ence nor  continue  its  existence  independent  of  other 
forces ;  and  seeing  the  vast  progress  that  has  been 
made  during  the  current  century  in  our  knowledge  of 
the  subtlest  powers  in  nature — heat,  light,  actinism, 
magnetism,  galvanism,  and  electricity — we  cannot  sup- 
press the  hope  that  science  will  ere  long  be  enabled  to 
do  something  more  than  merely  give  a  name  to  the 
most  interesting  of  natural  phenomena. 

It  has  also  been  argued — and  the  argument  is  by  no 
means  foreign  to  the  inquiry — that  if  there  be  a  pro- 
cess of  modification  in  nature,  by  which  the  higher  is 
developed  from  the  lower,  the  process  must  embrace 
the  mental  as  well  as  the  physical  organization  of  the 
creature  so  developed.  This  argument  embodies,  of 
course,  the  old  question  of  instinct  and  reason,  or  in 
other  words,  whether  the  guiding  power  of  the  lower 
animals  be  a  thing  sui  generis,  and  distinct  from  the 
reason  or  directing  intelligence  of  man"?  It  is  almost 
needless,  at  this  stage  of  science,  to  discuss  the  ques- 
tion. In  the  animal  classes  next  to  man — the  birds 
and  mammals — we  perceive  a  growing  concentration 
of  the  great  nervous  centres,  the  existence  of  a  more 
convoluted  brain,  the  possession  of  similar  senses,  act- 
ing through  similar  organs  and  influenced  by  similar 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  51 


causes.  By  the  impressions  made  on  these  organs  of 
sense  animals  are  impelled  to  certain  actions  ;  and 
nothing  more  can  be  said  of  the  causes  affecting;  the 
senses  of  man.  Colors,  sounds,  odors,  and  tastes, 
which  are  agreeable  or  disagreeable  to  man,  are  equally 
gratifying  or  distasteful  to  them ;  mimetic  disguises  in 
nature  are  alike  deceptive  to  both ;  and  even  the 
very  lures  which  men  employ  for  their  capture,  prove 
beyond  doubt  that  their  sexes  and  their  faculties  of 
perception  and  emotion  are  essentially  the  same  in  na- 
ture. Perception,  memory,  reflection,  hope,  fear,  af- 
fection, and  other  mental  attributes,  are  characteristics 
of  the  lower  animals  as  well  as  of  man,  as  may  be  am- 
ply studied  in  the  conduct  and  docility  of  our  domes- 
ticated species  ;  and  the  only  difference  is  that  of  de- 
gree, with  the  super-addition  of  other  intellectual  gifts 
(to  be  afterward  noticed)  which  are  necessary  conco- 
mitants of  his  higher  development.  If,  then,  instinct 
means  the  unreflecting  impulse  to  certain  actions,  man 
has  his  instincts  as  well  as  other  animals ;  and  if,  on 
the  other  hand,  reason  means  the  power  to  discrimin- 
ate between  certain  courses  of  action,  and  to  choose 
one  in  preference  to  another,  then  are  the  lower  ani- 
mals, especially  many  of  the  higher  mammals,  by  no 
means  without  it.  And  here,  while  on  the  subject  of 
mind,  we  may  be  pardoned  for  hinting  to  psycholog- 
ists, that  as  anatomy  and  physiology  have  derived  in- 
calculable aid  from  the  study  of  the  structure  of  the 


52  MAN 


lower  forms  of  life,  so  may  psychology  obtain  impor- 
tant assistance  from  a  more  intimate  study  of  mental 
manifestations  in  the  lower  animals.  If,  as  Edward 
Forbes  lias  well  remarked,  the  lower  forms  of  life  be 
"  living  analyses  of  higher  organized  compounds,"  as 
far  as  regards  their  somatic  side,  they  are  equally  so  as 
concerns  their  intellectual  nature ;  and  what  often  baf- 
fles on  account  of  its  complexity  in  man  might  be  ren- 
dered comprehensible  by  a  study  of  its  simpler  mani- 
festations in  the  lower  orders.  If  as  zoologists  we  can- 
not possibly  dissociate  the  physical  structure  of  man 
from  the  great  scheme  of  life,  neither  as  psychologists 
are  we  entitled  to  attempt  a  severance  of  his  intellec- 
tual nature,  unless  as  a  matter  of  degree,  and  for  the 
mere  convenience  of  provisional  arrangement. 

The  main  difference  seems  to  be  that  the  intellectual 
principle  in  the  lower  animals  soon  reaches  its  climax 
and  remains  stationary,  while  in  man  it  is  ever  improv- 
able and  progressive :  improvable  in  the  individual, 
and  progressive  in  the  race.  And  this  unprovability 
seems  to  arise  chiefly  from  his  power  of  generalizing 
his  ideas,  or,  as  metaphysicians  term  it,  ' '  the  faculty 
of  abstraction,"  in  conjunction  with  the  power  of  ex- 
pressing these  ideas  in  articulate  language.  Indeed, 
on  these  endowments  some  reasoners  found  the  main 
distinction  between  man  and  the  lower  animals  ;  but 
we  must  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  there  may  be 
difference  in  degree  without  there  being  any  difference 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  53 


in  kind,  and  that  without  the  higher  structural  adapt- 
ations— the  erect  gait  and  the  hand  to  manipulate — 
these  mental  gifts  would  of  themselves  be  of  compara- 
tively little  value.  "This,"  says  Locke,  in  his  Essay 
on  the  Human  Understanding,  "I  think  I  may  be 
positive  iu,  that  the  power  of  abstracting  is  not  at  all 
in  them  ;  and  that  the  having  of  general  ideas  is  that 
which  puts  a  perfect  distinction  betwixt  man  and 
brutes,  and  is  an  excellency  which  the  faculties  of 
brutes  do  bv  no  means  attain  to."  And  Dr.  H.  Bis- 
choff,  in  his  Essay  on  the  Difference  between  Man  and 
Brutes,  says,  "It  is  impossible  to  deny  to  animals, 
qualitatively  and  quantitatively,  as  many  mental  facul- 
ties as  we  find  in  man.  They  possess  consciousness. 
They  feel,  think,  and  judge  :  they  possess  a  will  which 
determines  their  actions  and  motions.  Animals  pos- 
sess attachment :  they  are  grateful,  obedient,  good- 
natured  ;  and,  again,  false,  treacherous,  disobedient, 
revengeful,  jealous,  etc.  Their  actions  frequently 
evince  deliberation  and  memory.  It  is  in  vain  to  de- 
rive such  actions  from  so-called  instinct,  which  uncon- 
sciously compels  them  so  to  act.  But  though  we  can- 
not deny  to  animals  consciousness,  we  assert  that 
man  alone  possesses  self-consciousness,  that  is,  the  ca- 
pacity of  meditating  on  himself  and  his  connection 
with  the  rest  of  creation."  And  again,  a  recent  writer, 
Mr.  C.  Wake,  in  the  Anthropological  Review,  vol.  1, 
contends  that   "the  true  explanation  of  the  inferior- 


54  MAN 


ity  of  tlie  lower  animals  is,  that  their  mental  powers, 
though  not  imperfect  either  in  their  constitution,  de- 
velopment, or  operation,  and  though  containing  in 
themselves  the  germ  of  all  truth,  are  yet  limited  in 
their  very  nature,  and  incapable,  without  the  assist- 
ance of  a  higher  principle,  of  reaching  beyond  a  cer- 
tain range  of  knowledge.  The  soul  is  essentially  in- 
stinctive ;  but  superadded  to  instinct  it  possesses  the 
power  of  storing  up  its  sensational  experiences,  of  re- 
calling them  by  memory,  and  of  reasoning  from  them, 
and  forming  judgments  as  to  their  relations.  It  is  ob- 
servable, however,  that  although  brute-reason  enables 
its  subjects  to  reason  from  past  experience  as  to  the 
proper  conduct  under  particular  circumstances,  it 
never  enables  them  to  get  further.  The  lower  animals 
have  no  power  of  abstraction  or  generalization,  in  the 
proper  signification  of  these  words.  They  do,  indeed, 
sometimes  act  as  though  they  exercise  such  a  power, 
but  they  do  not  in  reality ;  the  appearance  of  it  arising 
from  the  intimate  connection  which  always  continues 
in  the  brute-mind  betwixt  instinct  and  reason.  How- 
ever perfect  may  be  their  reasoning  about  particulars, 
it  never  leads  them  to  the  knowledge  of  general  truths, 
nor  even  to  the  remembrance  of  particular  ones,  ex- 
cept so  far  only  as  they  may  be  influential  over  present 
action."  And  lastly,  Max  Midler,  in  his  Science  of 
Language,  after  admitting  that  brutes  have  five  senses 
like  ourselves,  that  they  have  sensations  of  pleasure 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  55 


and  pain,  that  they  have  memory,  that  they  are  able 
to  compare  and  distinguish,  have  a  will  of  their  own, 
show  signs  of  shame  and  pride,  and  are  guided  by  in- 
tellect as  well  as  instinct,  goes  on  to  ask  :  ' '  What, 
then,  is  the  difference  between  brute  and  man  ? 
What  is  it  that  man  can  do,  and  of  which  we  have  no 
signs,  no  rudiments,  in  the  whole  brute  world  ?  I 
answer  without  hesitation  :  the  one  great  barrier  be- 
tween the  brute  and  man  is  Language.  Man  speaks, 
and  no  brute  has  ever  uttered  a  word.  Language  is 
our  Rubicon,  and  no  brute  has  ever  crossed  it." 

To  all  such  averments  as  the  preceding,  however 
plausibly  or  decidedly  put,  there  is  still  the  question  : 
Are  not  these  powers  of  abstraction  and  language  a 
matter  of  degree  rather  than  of  kind  ?  Do  not  the 
actions  of  many  of  the  lower  animals  sufficiently  indi- 
cate that  they  reason  from  the  particular  to  the  gener- 
al ?  And  have  they  not  the  power  of  communicating 
their  thoughts  to  one  another  by  vocal  sounds  which 
cannot  be  otherwise  regarded  than  as  language  ?  No 
one  who  has  sufficiently  studied  the  conduct  of  our 
domestic  animals  but  must  be  convinced  of  this  power 
of  generalization  ;  no  one  who  has  listened  attentively 
to  the  various  calls  of  mammals  and  birds  can  doubt  that 
they  have  the  power  of  expressing  their  mental  emo- 
tions in  language.  Their  powers  of  abstraction  may 
be  limited,  and  the  range  of  their  language  restricted 
but  what  shall  we  say  of  the  [mental  capacity  of  the 


56  -  3i  ax: 


now  extinct  Tasmanian,  which  could  not  carry  him 
beyond  individual  conceptions,  or  of  the  monosyllabic 
click-cluck  of  the  Bushman,  as  compared  with  the  in- 
tellectual grasp  and  the  inflectional  languages  of 
modern  Europe  !  If  it  shall  be  said  that  these  are 
matters  merely  of  degree,  then  are  the  mental  pro- 
cesses and  languages  of  the  lower  animals,  as  com- 
pared with  those  of  man,  also  matters  of  degree — things 
that  manifest  themselves  in  the  same  way  and  by  the 
same  organs,  but  differing  in  power  according  to  the 
perfection  of  the  organs  through  which  they  are  mani- 
fested.* This  inferiority  of  intellectual  adaptation, 
which  soon  reaches  its  climax  in  the  lower  animals,, 
limits  the  unprovability  in  the  individual  and  prevents 
progression  in  the  race  ;  whereas  the  superior  adapta- 
tion of  man   secures,  under  favorable  conditions,  at 

*  Of  these  opinions,  which  have  been  arrived  at  by  a  long  and 
intimate  study  of  the  conduct  of  the  lower  animals,  we  rind  the 
following  pointed  corroboration  in  the  Introduction  to  Agassiz's 
Contributions  to  the  Natural  History  of  the  United  States  :  "The 
intelligibility  of  the  voice  of  animals  to  one  another,  and  all  their 
actions  connected  with  such  calls,  are  also  a  strong  argument  of 
their  perceptive  power,  and  of  their  ability  to  act  spontaneously 
and  with  logical  sequence  in  accordance  with  these  perceptions. 
There  is  a  vast  field  open  for  investigation  in  the  relations  between 
the  voice  and  the  actions  of  animals,  and  a  still  more  interesting 
subject  of  inquiry  in  the  relationship  between  the  cycle  of  intona- 
tions which  different  species  of  animals  of  the  same  family  are  ca- 
pable of  uttering,  which,  so  far  as  I  have  yet  been  able  to  trace 
them,  stand  to  one  another  in  the  same  relations  as  the  different 
so  called  families  of  languages." 


HIS  ZOOLOGICAL  DELATIONS.  57 


once  the  improvement  of  the  individual  and  the  pro- 
gress of  the  race.  It  is  this  unprovability,  taken  in  its 
widest  sense,  that  places  man  in  new  relationships  to 
nature — relationships  which  involve  at  once  the  con- 
sciousness of  right  and  wrong  and  the  idea  of  moral 
responsibility.  Psychologically  this  is  all  that  can  be 
fairly  advanced,  and  all  that  in  a  natural-history  point 
of  view  need  be  contended  for ;  though  we  are  aware 
that  many  biologists,  and  some  of  them  of  the  highest 
reputation,  believe  in  a  much  closer,  and  to  some 
minds  a  more  startling  relationship,  namely,  that  of  an 
immaterial  and  spiritual  community  between  man  and 
the  lower  animals. 

"For  the  most  part,"  says  Professor  Agassiz,*  "the 
relations  of  individuals  to  individuals  are  unquestiona- 
bly of  an  organic  nature,  and  as  such,  have  to  be 
viewed  in  the  same  light  as  any  other  structural  fea- 
ture ;  but  there  is  much  also  in  these  connections  that 
partakes  of  a  psychological  character,  taking  this  ex- 
pression in  the  widest  sense  of  the  word.  When  ani- 
mals fight  with  one  another,  when  they  associate  for  a 
common  purpose,  when  they  warn  one  another  in 
danger,  when  they  come  to  the  rescue  of  one  another,, 
when  they  display  pain  and  joy,  they  manifest  impulses 
of  the  same  kind  as  are  considered  among  the  moral 
attributes  of  man.     The  range  of  their  passions  is  even 


••Essay  on  Classification,  pp.  96-9'J.    London-    1850. 


58  man : 


as  extensive  as  that  of  the  human  mind,  and  I  am  at  a 
loss  to  perceive  a  difference  of  kind  between  them, 
however  much  they  may  differ  in  degree  and  in  the 
manner  in  which  they  are  expressed.  The  gradations 
of  the  moral  faculties  among  the  higher  animals  and 
man  are  moreover  so  imperceptible,  that  to  deny  to 
the  first  a  certain  sense  of  responsibility  and  conscious- 
ness, would  certainly  be  an  exaggeration  of  the  differ- 
ences which  distinguish  animals  and  man.  There 
exists,  besides,  as  much  individuality,  within  their  res- 
pective capabilities,  among  animals  as  among  man,  as 
every  sportsman,  every  keeper  of  menageries,  and 
every  farmer  or  shepherd  can  testify,  or  any  who  has 
had  large  experience  with  wild,  tamed,  or  domestic- 
ated animals.  This  argues  strongly  in  favor  of  the 
existence  in  every  animal  of  an  immaterial  principle 
similar  to  that  which,  by  its  excellence  and  superior 
endowments,  places  man  so  much  above  animals.  Yet 
the  principle  unquestionably  exists,  and  whether  it  be 
called  soul,  reason,  or  instinct,  it  presents  in  the  whole 
range  of  organized  beings  a  series  of  phenomena  closely 
linked  together ;  and  upon  it  are  based  not  only  the 
higher  manifestations  of  the  mind,  but  the  very  per- 
manence of  the  specific  differences  which  characterize 
every  organism.  Most  of  the  arguments  of  philosophy 
in  favor  of  the  immortality  of  man  apply  equally  to 
the  permanency  of  this  principle  in  other  living  beings. 
May  I  not  add,  that  a  future  life,  in  which  man  would 


HIS    ZOOLOGICAL    DELATIONS.  59 


be  deprived  of  that  great  source  of  enjoyment  and  in- 
tellectual and  moral  improvement  which  results  from 
the  contemplation  of  the  harmonies  of  an  organic 
world,  would  involve  a  lamentable  loss  ?  And  may  we 
not  look  to  a  spiritual  concert  of  the  combined  worlds 
and  all  their  inhabitants  in  presence  of  their  Creator, 
as  the  highest  conception  of  paradise '?  "  For  views 
like  these,  biology,  as  we  have  elsewhere  observed,* 
is  by  no  means  responsible.  Science  knows  nothing 
of  Life  save  through  its  manifestations.  With  the 
growth  of  physical  organization  it  comes,  with  the  de- 
cay of  organization  it  disappears.  While  life  endures, 
mind  is  its  accompaniment ;  when  life  ceases,  mental 
activity  comes  to  a  close.  Thus  far  we  can  trace ;  be- 
yond this  science  is  utterly  helpless.  No  observation 
from  the  external  world ;  no  analogy,  however  plausi- 
ble ;  no  analysis,  however  minute,  can  solve  the  prob- 
lem of  an  immaterial  and  immortal  existence.  They 
may  be  received  as  possible  or  probable  auxiliaries ; 
but  in  the  main  our  faith  on  this  point  must  rest,  as  it 
has  hitherto  rested,  on  an  altogether  different  foun- 
dation. What  we  have  to  deal  with  in  the  present 
inquiry  are  zoological  relations  which  admit  of  pro- 
bation, and  we  only  complicate  the  question  by  the 
unnecessary  introduction  \  of  the  still  more  difficult 
problem  of  a  spiritual  community. 

*  Past  and  Present  Life  of  the  Globe,  pp.  206-7.  Edinburgh:  1861. 


60  max : 


Our  first  proposition  then  is,  that  man  in  his  struc- 
tural relations  belongs  to  the  same  zoological  plan  as 
the  lower  animals ;  and  that,  while  in  this  plan  there 
are  obviously  higher  and  lower  members,  adaptive 
modification  of  pre-existing  structures  rather  than 
independent  creation  of  new  ones  seems  to  have  been 
the  method  of  nature  in  the  production  of  the  newer 
and  higher  forms.  And  further,  that  this  principle  of 
adaptive  modification,  inferred  from  the  study  of  ex- 
isting life-forms,  receives  ample  confirmation  from  the 
science  of  extinct  forms,  in  which  the  ascent  from 
lower  to  higher  is  marked,  not  by  the  superaddition 
of  new  parts,  but  simply  by  the  change  or  further 
specialization  of  those  pre-existing.  The  whole  scheme 
of  vitality,  from  the  earliest  known  formations  up  to 
the  present  day,  being  clearly  a  development  of  the 
same  typical  ideas,  shall  we  regard  the  newer  forms 
as  created  stage  after  stage,  in  accordance  with  this 
aboriginal  plan,  or  shall  we  regard  their  introduction 
as  provided  for  and  brought  about,  like  other  phe- 
nomena, by  the  operation  of  law  and  secondary  causa- 
tion ?  This  is  the  whole  question  at  issue.  Xeed  we 
indicate  which  view  is  most  in  accordance  with  the 
known  operations  of  nature,  or  which  recommends 
itself  most  forcibly  to  the  acceptance  of  the  educated 
intellect  ? 


GEOGRAPHICAL  RELATIONS. 

Influence  of  External  Conditions  on  Life — Their  Influence  on 
Civilization — Variation  through  Physical  Surroundings — Pow- 
er of  Locality  on  mental  Characteristics — External  Conditions 
merely  Co-factors  in  the  Law  of  Variation — Our  Second  Pro- 
position. 

On  surveying  the  surface  of  the  globe,  whether  the 
land  or  waters,  we  perceive  that  plants  and  animals 
are  not  universally  or  indiscriminately  dispersed,  but 
that  certain  groups  are  restricted  to  certain  areas,  and 
that  the  range  of  some  groups  is  more  extensive  than 
that  of  others.  In  this  distribution,  climate,  food, 
geological  changes  of  sea  and  land,  and  other  physical 
conditions,  are  the  main  factors  ;  for  as  soon  as  any 
important  alteration  is  made  in  these  conditions,  a 
coresponding  change  takes  place  in  the  distribution  of 
the  vital  organisms.  And  not  a  change  in  the  distri- 
bution  merely,  but  often  a  modification  of  the  plants 
and  animals  themselves,  by  which  they  adapt  them- 
selves to  their  new  conditions,  thriving  and  spreading, 


62  max : 


or  declining  and  dying  out,  according  to  the  power  ot 
adaptability  with  which  they  are  endowed.  It  is  true 
the  ranges  of  certain  groups  may  suffer  no  perceptible 
change  for  ages,  yet  no  truth  in  geology  is  more  thor_ 
oughly  established  than  that  every  portion  of  the 
earth's  surface  is,  and  has  been,  subjected  to  variations ; 
and  hence  we  naturally  associate  external  conditions 
and  vital  changes,  whether  of  distribution  or  of  char- 
acter, in  the  way  of  cause  and  effect.  It  is  by  no 
means  contended  that  external  conditions  are  the  sole 
causes  of  vital  variation,  but  merely  affirmed  that  they 
are  important  and  obvious  causes,  and,  as  such,  must 
ever  be  taken  into  account  in  all  our  reasonings  on  the 
diversity  and  distribution  of  plants  and  animals.  Like 
the  lower  animals,  man  is  also  amenable  to  the  influ- 
ences of  food  and  climate,  but  beiug  possessed  of  the 
power  of  clothing  himself,  of  storing  up  food,  and  of 
using  fire,  he  has  acquired  an  almost  cosmopolitan 
range,  few  tracts  of  the  earth  being  untenanted  by 
him,  save  the  snow-clad  mountain-tops  or  the  ice- 
bound solitudes  of  the  polar  regions. 

Though  having  a  wider  range  than  other  animals, 
and  less  influenced  by  latitude  and  altitude,  man  in 
all  his  relations,  physical,  social,  and  industrial,  is  still 
intimately  affected  by  his  geographical  surroundings. 
Under  the  tropics,  where  warmth  and  the  means  of 
subsistence  are  easily  procured,  he  is  chiefly  a  vegeta- 
ble-feeder, improvident  and  little  progressive ;   under 


HIS    GEOGRAPHICAL    RELATIONS.  (33 


temperate  latitudes,  where  the  means  of  subsistence 
are  procured  with  greater  difficulty,  and  seasonal 
changes  have  to  be  studied,  he  is  partly  a  vegetable 
and  partly  an  animal  feeder,  more  industrious,  provi- 
dent, and  progressive ;  while  within  the  polar  regions, 
where  warmth  has  to  be  sustained  by  diet,  and  where 
his  whole  time  is  spent  in  securing  a  precarious  sub- 
sistence, he  is  solely  an  animal-feeder,  toilsome  but 
stationary.  As  man  now  subsists  under  these  broad 
climatic  distinctions,  so  he  must  have  subsisted  in 
former  ages ;  and  thus  he  may  have  been  in  turns 
chiefly  a  vegetable-feeder  or  chiefly  an  animal-feeder, 
according  to  the  distributions  of  sea  and  land,  and  the 
climates  thereby  engendered.  As  the  Esquimaux,  in 
virtue  of  their  position,  are  strictly  animal-feeders,  and 
have  even  no  name  for  the  fruits  and  grains,  so  during 
the  Glacial  Epoch  in  Europe  a  race  of  men  may  have 
subsisted  by  hunting  and  fishing  among  the  glaciers 
on  land  and  the  icebergs  on  water.  We  mention  this, 
in  passing,  to  show  how  futile  the  arguments  of  those 
who  contend  that  man  was  only  called  into  being  with, 
and  could  not  have  subsisted  without,  the  fruit-bearing 
and  grain-yielding  plants  of  the  present  day,  and  thus 
would  limit  his  antiquity  to  a  chronology  of  their  own 
creating.  The  limits  of  man's  endurance,  and  the 
conditions  under  which  he  can  subsist,  are  vastly 
wider  and  much  more  multifarious  than  civilized 
reasoners  are  generally  prone  to  believe.     Indeed,  so 


64  MAN 


far  as  mere  geographical  conditions  are  concerned,  lie 
may  have  been  an  inhabitant  of  this  earth  for  untold 
ages,  and  the  lower  the  variety,  the  greater  apparently 
his  chances  of  subsistence. 

Following  the  influence  of  geographical  conditions, 
we  find  it  affecting  not  only  man's  form  and  features, 
but  determining  his  habits  and  industry,  and  even  more 
intimately  pervading  his  whole  intellectual  and  moral 
nature.     The  inhabitants  of  the  plains  become  tillers 
of  the  ground  and  builders  of  cities,  while  those  of  the 
mountains   remain   herdsmen    and    shepherds.      The 
dwellers  on  the  sea-board  are  naturally  drawn  to  ad- 
venture and  trading  and  commerce;  while  those  of  the 
interior  as  naturally  abide  by  their  homesteads  and 
husbandry.     A   country  of  uniform  soil,  climate,  and 
production,   must  tend  in  the  long  run  to  uniformity 
of  industry   as   well   as   to    a  limited    and  stationary 
civilization.     No  matter  what  the  race,  if  the  natural 
means  of  progress,   vegetable,    animal,    and  mineral, 
lie  not  within  a  country,  its  inhabitants  can  never  rise, 
without  extraneous  aid,   beyond  the  lowest  stages  of 
advancement.     The  civilizations,  for  example,  capable 
of  being   evolved   in   Europe   and  in  Australia  could 
never  have  been  the  same,  even  had  the  aborigines  of 
both  continents  been  naturally  equal.     The  fruits  and 
grains,   the  horse,   ox,  sheep,  pig,  dog,  and  the  like, 
which  characterize  the  one  country,  and  have  contri- 
buted so  much  to  its  civilization,  were  totally  wanting 


HIS    GEOGRAPHICAL    RELATIONS.  65 


in  the  other,  and  had  no  analogous  productions  to 
represent  them.  A  vegetable  and  animal  feeding 
people  has  ever  the  advantage  in  physical  strength  and 
mental  activity  over  a  purely  vegetarian  race ;  and  a 
country  having  a  variety  of  soil,  climate,  and  produce, 
is  ever  the  most  favorable  for  evoking  an  energetic  and 
progressive  civilization.  As  one  act  leads  to  another 
act,  and  intellectual  exercise  to  intellectual  activity,  so 
from  their  geographical  positions  and  pursuits  men  are 
gradually  led  to  assume  national  characteristics  which 
ultimately  become  transmissible  and  permanent. 
Hence  it  is  that  one  people  continues  indolent  andun- 
progressive,  while  another  exhibits  incessant  activity 
and  progress  ;  that  one  nation  is  lively,  gay,  and  fickle, 
and  another  serious,  sober,  and  steadfast.  Hence  also 
in  a  great  measure  the  higher  intellectual  nature,  and 
the  power  to  subjugate  and  adapt  the  forces  of  nature 
according  as  geographical  position  supplies  the  means 
of  subjugation  and  adaptation. 

In  support  of  this  doctrine  we  might  adduce  a  thou- 
sand instances,  but  content  ourselves  with  one  which 
has  thus  been  very  aptly  advanced  by  an  American 
observer:  "The  nature  and  extent  of  the  influence 
of  topographical  features  receive,"  says  Mr.  Squier,  in 
his  Notes  on  Central  America,  "a  striking  illustration 
both  in  the  past  and  present  condition  of  this  country. 
At  the  period  of  its  discovery  it  was  found  in  the  occu- 
pation of  two  families  of  men,  presenting  in  respect 
5 


6Q  MAX 


to  each,  other  the  strongest  points  of  contrast.  Upon 
the  high  plateaus  of  the  interior,  and  upon  the  Pacific 
declivity  of  the  continent,  where  the  rains  are  com- 
paratively light,  the  country  open,  and  the  climate 
relatively  cool  and  salubrious,  were  found  great  and 
populous  nations  far  advanced  in  civilization,  and 
maintaining  a  systematized  religious  and  civil  organ- 
ization. Upon  the  Atlantic  declivity,  on  the  other 
hand,  among  dense  forests  nourished  by  constant  rains 
into  rank  vigor,  on  low  coasts,  where  marshes  and 
lagoons,  sweltering  under  a  fierce  sun,  generated  deadly 
miasmatic  damps,  were  found  savage  tribes  of  men, 
without  fixed  abodes,  living  upon  the  natural  fruits  of 
the  soil  and  the  precarious  supplies  of  fishing  and  the 
chase,  without  religion,  and  with  scarcely  a  semblance 
of  social  or  political  establishments. 

"It  is  impossible  to  resist  the  conviction  that  the 
contrasting  conditions  of  these  two  great  families  were 
principally  due  to  the  equally  contrasting  physical 
conditions  of  their  respective  countries.  With  the 
primitive  dweller  on  the  Atlantic  declivity,  no  con- 
siderable advance  bej^ond  the  rudest  habits  of  life  was 
possible.  He  was  powerless  against  the  exuberant 
vitality  of  savage  nature,  which  even  the  civilized 
man,  with  all  his  appliances,  is  unable  to  subdue,  and 
which  still  retains  its  ancient  dominion  over  the  broad 
alluvions  of  Central  and  South  America.  His  means 
of  sustenance  were  too  few  and  too  precarious  to  admit 


HIS    GEOGRAPHICAL    RELATIONS.  07 


of  his  making  permanent  establishments,  which  in  turn 
would  involve  an  adjustment  of  the  relations  of  men 
and  the  organization  of  society.  He  was,  therefore,  a 
hunter  from  necessity,  nomadic  in  his  habits,  and 
obliged  to  dispute  his  life  with  men,  who,  like  himself, 
were  scarcely  less  savage  than  the  beasts  of  the  forest. 
Civilization  could  never  have  been  developed  under 
such  circumstances.  It  could  only  originate  where 
favorable  physical  circumstances  afford  to  man  some 
relief  from  the  pressure  of  immediate  and  ever  recurr- 
ing wants.  There  a  genial  climate  and  an  easily-culti- 
vated soil,  bountiful  in  indigenous  fruits,  would  enable 
him  not  only  to  make  his  permanent  abode,  but  to  de- 
vote a  portion  of  his  time  to  the  improvement  of  his 
superior  nature." 

This  power  of  locality,  physically  and  intellectually, 
has  long  been  remarked  by  mankind.  The  language 
of  every-day  life  is  replete  with  allusions  to  the  effects 
of  country  and  climate.  Hence  the  "bracing"  influ- 
ences ascribed  to  one  district,  and  the  "enervating" 
effects  of  another;  the  "healthy  and  exhilarating" 
climate  of  one  region,  and  the  "unhealthy  and  de- 
pressing "  atmosphere  of  another  ;  the  ' '  steady  and 
peaceful "  pursuits  induced  by  dwelling  in  the  fertile 
plain,  and  the  "roving  and  warlike"  propensities  en- 
gendered by  living  among  the  mountains;  the  "big 
and  brawny "  inhabitants  of  one  country,  and  the 
"diminutive  and  feeble"  of  another  ;  the  "grave  and 


08 


man  : 


thoughtful "  demeanor  of  cme  nation,  and  the  "lively 
recklessness "  of  another.  Unless  these  influences 
were  facts  in  nature,  they  would  not  have  been  so 
generally  observed  and  acted  upon  ;  and  hence  it  may 
be  laid  down  as  an  axiom  that  man,  like  the  lower 
animals,  is  affected  in  his  form,  his  habits,  his  indus- 
trial pursuits,  and  his  intellectual  characteristics,  by 
the  geographical  conditions  of  his  position,  and  that 
these  influences  become  one  of  the  most  efficient  means 
in  producing  varietal  distinctions  or  races  among  man- 
kind. Indeed,  we  cannot  conceive  how  these  influ- 
ences could  operate  without  in  time  producing  changes 
in  the  cerebral  organization  of  nations  as  well  as  in 
their  mere  muscular  and  bony  structures.  The  one 
organ  is  as  impressible  and  plastic  as  the  other,  and 
thus  it  happens  that  qualities,  mental  as  well  as  physi- 
cal, are  gradually  acquired,  gradually  become  heredi- 
tary, and  ultimately  assume,  by  cumulative  transmis- 
sion, the  magnitude  of  racial  characteristics.  "  The 
mould,"  says  the  late  lamented  Edward  Forbes,  "in 
which  the  character  of  a  nation  is  cast,  is,  like  most 
moulds,  a  mineral  one — the  soil  and  its  properties ; 
and  the  power  which  melts  the  metal,  and  shapes  it  to 
the  mould,  is  the  influence  of  temperature,  whether  it 
be  a  man  cast  by  God,  or  a  spoon  cast  by  man.  The 
sun  and  the  earth,  climate  and  soil,  are  the  great  eth- 
nogenitors."  What  but  the  influence  of  new  condi- 
tions that  has  developed  the  Yankee  form,  features, 


HIS    GEOGRAPHICAL    RELATIONS.  69 


and  habits  from  the  old  Anglo-Saxon  stock  of  Western 
Europe?  and  what  but  the  same  cause  that  within 
three  or  four  generations  has  begun  to  stamp  new  fea- 
tures on  the  British  Australian  ?  What  bnt  different 
geographical  positions  that  evolved  the  Welsh,  the 
Scotch,  and  the  Irish  Celt  from  the  original  Celtic 
stock  of  the  East  ?  and  what  but  the  same  power,  act- 
ing through  untold  ages,  and  concomitantly  with  the 
principle  of  ascensive  development  in  time,  that  has 
stamped  the  still  broader  characteristics  of  Caucasian, 
Mongolian,  and  Malay  ?  We  say  concomitantly  with 
the  principle  of  ascensive  development  in  time,  for  it 
must  never  be  forgotten  that  external  conditions  are 
bnt  secondary  factors,  and  that  there  is  a  higher  law 
overruling  the  appearance  of  life  in  time  than  that 
which  determines  its  distribution  in  space. 

So  far  then  as  geographical  conditions  are  concerned, 
man  enjoys  no  immunity  from  their  influence  any  more 
than  other  species,  and  if  he  has  a  wider  range  and 
space,  this  he  possesses  in  virtue  of  his  higher  intelli- 
gence, which  enables  him  to  provide  clothing,  shelter, 
food,  and  fire.  That  other  species  are  affected  in  their 
size,  form,  color,  and  other  particulars,  by  the  physi- 
cal surroundings  of  their  position,  every  zoologist  will 
admit ;  and  we  merely  contend  for  the  operation  of 
the  same  influences  in  the  production  of  differences 
among  the  human  family.  The  wider  the  differences 
in  geographical  positions,  the  broader  the  distinctions 


70 


MAIN"  : 


among  the  inhabiting  peoples ;  and  the  more  isolated 
any  tribe,  the  more  intensified  their  characteristics 
through  want  of  intermingling  with  other  tribes. 
Climate  and  food  will  influence  form  and  features ;  the 
ease  or  difficulty  of  procuring  sustenance  will  induce 
habits  of  indolence  or  activity;  new  objects  requiring 
new  names  and  new  words  to  express  their  relations 
will  modify  language ;  seasonal  changes  will  give  rise 
to  industrial  peculiarities  and  foresight ;  and  thus  the 
whole  train  of  physical  as  well  as  of  mental  attributes 
derive  their  peculiarities  immediately  and  directly  from 
the  geographical  conditions  by  which  a  nation  is  sur- 
rounded. We  do  not  say  that  physical  surroundings 
are  the  sole  factors  in  the  production  of  varietal  dis- 
tinctions, but  we  claim  for  them  a  direct  and  important 
influence  in  contributing  to  this  result  among  men  as 
among  other  animals. 

While  claiming,  then,  for  geographical  conditions 
an  important  share  in  the  modification  of  vitality,  it 
must  ever  be  borne  in  mind  that  they  are  merely  co- 
factors,  and  could  not  of  themselves  account  either  for 
the  ordinal  ascent  of  life-forms  in  time,  or  for  the  cor- 
respondence between  this  ascent,  in  time  and  the  rank 
that  prevails  among  existing  orders.  There  must  be 
other  factors  at  work,  and  a  higher  law  governing  the 
direction  of  these  modifications ;  and  certain  theorists 
only  weaken  the  argument  of  external  influences  by 
seeking  to  ascribe  to  them  too  much  in  the  way  of 


HIS    GEOGRAPHICAL    RELATIONS.  71 


varietal  and  specific  deductions.  Geographical  sur- 
roundings have  clearly  a  direct  and  powerful  influence 
in  the  modification  of  life,  vegetableaor  animal,  and  on 
man  as  well  as  "on  other  creatures;  and  this,  in  view- 
ing the  relations  of  nation  to  nation,  and  race  to  race, 
is  all  we  contend  for. 

Our  second  proposition,  therefore,  is,  that  as  among 
the  lower  animals,  so  with  man,  geographical  condi- 
tions are  important  factors  in  producing  varietal  dis- 
tinctions, and  that  while  adaptive  modification  may 
produce  forms  for  certain  ends,  so  may  new  forms  be 
co-ordinately  modified  by  the  operation  of  external  or 
physical  surroundings.  The  granting  of  either  or  of 
both  of  these  as  sufficient  causes  of  change,  establishes 
a  method  in  nature  which  human  reason  can  examine 
and  comprehend ;  any  appeal,  on  the^other  hand,  to 
direct  creation  forecloses  all  inquiry,  and  places  the 
matter  at  once  beyond  the  range  of  scientific  investi- 
gation. 


ETHNOLOGICAL  RELATIONS. 

Distribution  and  Varietal  Distinctions — Question  of  Species  or 
Varieties— Plurality  or  Unity  of  Origin  ?— Higher  and  Lower 
Varieties — Eelations  of  these  in  time  and  space — Lowly  Origin 
of  the  Human  Race— Question  of  Extinct  Varieties— Our 
Third  Proposition. 

If,  then,  it  be  admitted  that  physical  conditions,  that 
is,  situation,  climate,  food,  and  the  like,  in  conjunction 
with  other  causes  to  be  afterward  noticed,  are  instru- 
mental in  producing  varietal  distinctions  among  ani- 
mals, to  these  we  must  also  look  for  the  ethnological 
differences  that  prevail  among  mankind.  Admitting 
that  man  constitutes  the  only  species  of  a  single  genus, 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  his  species  presents  several 
varieties  and  numerous  sub-varieties,  down  even  to 
minor  and  more  limited  distinctions.  We  say  varie- 
ties, but  it  may  be  fairly  questioned  whether  what  are 
now  called  varieties  would  not  have  been  regarded  as 
distinct  species,  had  zoologists  had  the  courage  to  ap- 
ply to  man  the  same  methods  of  differentiation  as 
they  are  in  the  habit  of  applying  to  other  animals. 
There  is  certainly  a  much  wider  difference  between 


HIS  ETHNOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.  73 


the  white  man  of  "Western  Europe  and  the  Bushman 
of  Southern  Africa,  than  there  is  between  many  so- 
called  species ;  but  the  bias  of  preconception  has  left 
its  mark  on  zoology  as  on  other  fields  of  thought,  and 
we  are  constrained  to  follow  the  nomenclature  in  vogue 
more  for  the  sake  of  being  understood  than  from 
belief  in  its  scientific  accuracy.  In  many  instances 
the  so-called  specific  distinctions  in  zoology  are 
founded  on  color,  covering,  and  other  features  often 
less  marked  than  the  corresponding  characteristics  in 
man;  and  yet  men  are  arranged  in  varieties  merely, 
while  these  lower  animals  are  separated  into  species. 
Strip  these  "species"  of  their  colors  and  covering, 
and  the  skeleton  of  the  one  could  not  be  distinguished 
from  that  of  the  other ;  but  place  the  skeleton  of  the 
African  Negro  beside  that  of  the  European  White,  and 
a  child  might  detect  the  difference.  A  science  so  par- 
tial in  its  methods  need  scarcely  be  appealed  to  for 
anything  decisive  respecting  the  natural-history  rela- 
tions of  man,  and  the  anthropologist  must  mainly 
abide  by  his  own  deductions. 

Seeing,  then,  that  the  great  continents  of  the  globe 
contain  numerous  nationalities  which  are  admittedly 
the  results  of  locality  or  physical  surroundings,  and 
that  these  nationalities  gradually  shade  into  each  other 
on  their  respective  confines,  it  may  be  further  admitted 
that  the  so-called  varieties  which  embrace  these  nation- 
alities owe,  in  like  manner,  their  distinguishing  char- 


74  MAN 


acteristics  mainly  to  the  long-continued  influence  of 
geographical  conditions :  the  principle  of  ascensive 
variation  in  time  being  always  admitted  and  allowed 
for.  In  Europe,  for  example,  French,  Spaniards, 
Italians,  and  other  minor  contiguous  sections,  gradu- 
ally shade  into  each  other  in  form,  feature,  language, 
and  other  peculiarities,  which  have  evidently  been 
super-induced  by  their  respective  positions  ;  and  hence 
they  are  regarded,  though  belonging  to  different 
stocks,  as  coming  under  the  same  variety.  As  the 
minor  differences  are  mainly  owing  to  geographical 
relations,  so  we  may  ascribe  the  major  distinctions  to 
a  similar  causation  acting  through  indefinite  periods  ; 
and  thus  we  may  trace  all  the  varieties,  European, 
Mongolian,  Negro,  etc.,  as  divergences  from  earlier 
varieties,  and  ultimately  from  one  original  source. 
We  are  aware  that  some  naturalists,  seeing  the  wide 
differences  that  exist  between  the  so-called  varieties, 
regard  them  as  having  sprung  from  different  primor- 
dial sources,  and,  therefore,  assign  to  them  different 
specific  centres  of  dispersion.  But  as  these  differences 
are  not  of  equal  value,  that,  for  example,  between  the 
Caucasian  and  Mongol  being  not  so  great  as  that 
between  the  Caucasian  and  Negro,  and  that  between 
the  Mongol  and  Malay  still  less,*  we  think  it  unneces- 

*  The  differences  between  these  varieties  being  so  unequal,  some 
writers  have  recently  adopted  the  idea  of  two  great  divisions  of 


HIS  ETHNOLOGICAL  DELATIONS.  75 


saiy  to  complicate  our  argument  with  this  view  of  equal 
and  independent  origin,  and  proceed  to  consider  the 
major  varieties  as  divergences  from  one  common 
source,  just  as  the  minor  nationalities  can  be  shown, 
from  their  language,  customs,  and  features,  to  be  un- 
mistakable off-shoots  from  the  same  variety.  It  is  no 
doubt  quite  possible  that  species  might  be  independ- 
ently created  in  the  widely-separated  areas  in  which 
we  now  find  them  ;  but  the  idea  of  their  developmen- 
tal descent  from  pre-existing  forms,  and  in  conformity 
to  a  great  aboriginal  plan,  is  much  more  probable,  and 
far  more  intelligible.  Even  were  the  separate  origin 
of  the  great  varieties,  Caucasian,  Mongolian,  Ethio- 
pian, etc.,  admitted,  there  is  still  the  question,  Did 
they  originate  simultaneously,  or  what  was  the  order 
of  their  appearance  ?  If  not  simultaneously,  which 
was  the  earlier  and  which  the  later  ?  and  if  earlier  and 
later,  what  were  the  peculiar  conditions  that  favored 
the  advent  of  the  former  and  retarded  the  appearance 
of  the  later  ?  Again,  if  plurality  of  origin  be  admitted, 
we  must  also  admit  plurality  of  species,  for,  zoologically 

mankind,  "  equal  in  value,  and  marked  by  characteristics  of  equal 
importance,"  namely,  the  whiles  and  tlie  Macks;  the  former  in- 
cluding the  so-called  Caucasian,  Mongolian,  Malay,  and  American  : 
and  the  latter,  the  African,  Australasian,  and  Papuan  or  Oceanic. 
For  the  ultimate  purposes  of  anthropological  science  this  division 
is  not  without  its  value,  and  may  be  further  referred  to  in  Andrew 
Murray's  important  work  on  the  Geographical  Distribution  of 
Mammals  :    1866. 


7<'»  man  : 


speaking,  varieties  are  mere  subordinate  divergences 
from  the  same  species,  and  could  not  in  this  sense  be 
regarded  as  independent  originations.  In  fact,  this 
hypothesis  of  plurality  of  origin  is  beset  with  numerous 
difficulties,  which  do  not  attend  the  idea  of  the  unity 
of  the  human  species,  and  its  subsequent  divergence, 
in  time  and  space,  into  varieties,  races,  and  other 
minor  distinctions.  For  such  divergence  we  can  per- 
ceive no  cause,  save  what  is  of  a  physical  nature  ;  and 
where  reason  can  satisfactorily  trace  this  mode  of  cau- 
sation operating  in  evident  obedience  to  pre-ordained 
laws,  it  were  outraging  the  principles  of  philosophy  to 
appeal  to  direct  interventions  on  the  part  of  the 
Creator. 

Ethnology,  or  the  science  of  races,*  as  founded 
partly  on  color  and  cranial  and  facial  aspects,  and 
partly  on  language  and  mental  characteristics,  is  by 
no  means  in  a  satisfactory  state  ;  but,  taking  Blumen- 
bach's  idea  of  varieties  (Caucasian,  Mongolian,  Amer- 
ican, Malay,  and  Ethiopian)  as  the  least  complicated 
and  familiar,  let  us  try  how  far  their  relative  antiquity, 


*  Ethnology  or  Ethnography,  though  the  science  at  present  most 
in  favor,  must  after  all  he  regarded  as  a  mere  department  of  An- 
thropology. The  one,  restricting  itself  to  the  study  of  existing 
races,  can  throw  no  light  on  the  origin,  antiquity,  or  destiny  ot 
man ;  whereas  the  other  embraces  all  that  can  he  learned  of  his 
past,  present,  and  future,  of  his  physiological  and  psychological, 
of  his  moral,  social,  and  industrial  relations. 


HIS    ETHNOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  77 


superiority,  and  probable  advancement,  are  determin- 
able. These  white,  yellow,  red,  brown,  and  black 
varieties,  though  shading  into  each  other  on  their  res- 
pective geological  confines,  are,  in  the  main,  suffi- 
ciently distinct,  and  present  physical  and  mental  char- 
acteristics which  rank  them  at  once  as  higher  and 
lower  ;  as  fitted  for  development  into  newer  and  higher 
varieties,  or  as  doomed  to  extinction.  There  can  be 
no  gainsavmo-  that  the  Caucasian,  or  white  man  of 
western  Asia  and  Europe,  stands  physically  and  intel- 
lectually on  a  higher  platform  than  the  Mongol  or  yel- 
low man  of  eastern  and  northern  Asia.  Within  the 
last  four  thousand  years  the  former  has  notably  ad- 
vanced in  art,  science,  and  literature  ;  in  all,  in  fact, 
which  constitutes  civilization  ;  while,  during  the  same 
period,  the  latter  has  remained  almost  stationary,  or 
but  little  progressive.  Again,  however  much  mis- 
taken philanthropy  may  argue  to  the  contrary,  there 
can  be  as  little  doubt  that  the  Ethiopian,  or  black  man 
of  Africa,  is  inferior  both  to  Mongol  and  Malay,  and 
still  more  so  to  the  Caucasian.*      He  has  had  posses- 


*  Even  physically  the  white  man  is  his  superior,  and  has  greater 
power  of  endurance,  according  to  the  Livingstones,  even  under 
the  burning  sun  of  his  own  natural  habitat.  "Our  experience 
tends  to  prove,"  say  they,  "that  the  European  constitution  has  a 
power  of  endurance,  even  in  the  tropics,  greater  than  that  of  the 
hardiest  of  the  meat-eating  Africans." — Narrative  of  an  Expedition 
to  the  Zambesi,  p.  170. 


78 


man: 


sion  of  the  African  continent,  with  all  its  variety  of 
situation,  climate,  and  produce,  from  time  immemo- 
rial, and  jet  he  has  no  arts  save  the  rudest,  no  litera- 
ture, no  science,  no  cities  nor  temples,  no  ships,  no 
moral  code  ;  in  most  instances  no  idea  even  of  a  Su- 
preme Being  ;  nothing,  in  fine,  that  removes  him  much 
beyond  the  desires  and  necessities  of  animal  existence. 
Speaking  of  Commoro,  one  of  the  most  active  and  in- 
telligent of  the  chiefs  whom  he  met  on  the  Upper 
Nile,  Sir  Samuel  Baker  says  :  "In  this  naked  savage 
there  was  not  even  a  superstition  upon  which  to  found 
a  religious  feeling;  there  was  a  belief  in  matter  ;  and 
to  his  understanding  everything  was  material."  *  As 
with  the  African,  so  according  to  Dr.  Mouat,  with  the 
the  Andamaner,  and  so  also,  according  to  Dr.  Lang, 
with  the  natives  of  Australia  ;  "  they  have  no  idea  of 
a  Supreme  Divinity,  no  objects  of  worship,  no  idols 
nor  temples,  no  sacrifices,  nothing  whatever  in  the 
shape  of  religion  to  distinguish  them  from  the  beasts.f 
Notwithstanding  all  this,  and  a  thousand  times  more 
which  could  be  adduced  from  every  region,  there 
are  some  who  will  still  argue  about  the  equality  of  the 
human  race,  and  talk  high-sounding  generalizations 
regarding  the  unity  and  the  brotherhood  of  man.  As 
well  might  they  contend  for  equality  among  brothers 


*  Great  Basin  of  the  Nile,  vol.  i,  p.  250. 
t  Lang's  Aborigines  of  Australia. 


HIS    ETHNOLOGICAL    KELATIONS.  70 


of  the  same  family,  or  for  equal  capacity  among  the 
men  and  families  of  a  nation.  Nature,  as  has  been 
well  remarked,  is  a  hierarchy,  not  a  democracy ;  and 
as  in  the  physical  world  there  are  snns,  and  systems, 
and  satellites,  so  in  the  vital  and  intellectual  there  are 
higher  and  lower,  races  born  to  command  and  lead, 
and  others  as  certainly  destined  to  obey  and  to  follow. 
It  is  not  because  one  race  has  risen  under  favorable 
conditions,  and  another  retrograded  or  remained  sta- 
tionary under  conditions  of  an  adverse  nature,  but 
because  of  aboriginal  differences  and  capabilities  which 
no  circumstances  can  efface  nor  appliances  counteract. 
And  these  differences,  when  interpreted  in  the  light  of 
progression,  have  clearly  reference  to  time,  to  periods 
during  which  the  higher  succeeded  the  lower,  and  the 
lower  that  which  stands  next  beneath  it.  Brotherhood 
there  may  and  ought  to  be,  as  far  as  the  inherent  in- 
stincts of  race  toward  race  will  permit,  and  these  in- 
stincts are  not  to  be  disregarded  with  impunity;  but 
as  to  unity,  if  by  unity  is  meant  oneness  of  power  and 
tendency,  it  is  an  assertion  which  all  history  contra- 
dicts and  present  experience  must  deny.  It  is  a  mere 
phrase  that  may  please  the  unthinking  ear,  but  it  is 
not  a  fact  that  can  satisfy  the  reason. 

This  relative  superiority  and  inferiority  of  the  varie- 
ties of  mankind  is  so  obvious,  that  it  need  not  be  fur- 
ther dwelt  upon,  unless  to  show  that  as  the  White 
man  advances  and  spreads  over  the  continents  of  the 


80  MAN 


world,  one  or  two  things  must  follow,  namely,  either 
the  colored  and  inferior  races  will  be  absorbed  into  his 
race  [and  partake  of  his  improvement,  or  in  time  be 
utterly  extinguished.     Looking  at  the  whole  history 
of  mankind,  so  far  as  history  throws  any  light  on  the 
matter,  this  has  been  the  unfailing  course  of  events, 
the  superior  races  advancing,  and  absorbing  the  in- 
ferior races  where  in  any  way  closely  related,  and  ex- 
tirpating them  where  the  difference  was  so  great  as  to 
prevent  interfusions  and  amalgamations.     And  even 
at  the  present  clay  and  under  our  own  eyes,  we  have 
the  most  ample  confirmation  of  this  invariable  method 
of  nature  in  the  fact  that  in  the  same  continent  and 
among   the   same   race   the   higher   nationalities    are 
gradually  absorbing  the  lower,    and  that  the  White 
man  is  gradually  extirpating  the  American   Indian, 
the  Tasmanian,  Australian,  and  all  inferior  varieties, 
wherever  he  plants  himself,   and  carries  along  with 
him  the  adjuncts  of  his  superior  civilization.     Speak- 
ing of  the  relative  positions  of  the  races,  white,  black, 
red,   and  yellow,  in  North  America,  a  recent  writer 
describes  the  superiority  of  the  White  in  these  truly 
graphic  and  comprehensive  terms:  "  The  White  Man, 
caring  for  neither  frost  nor  fire,  so  long  as  he  can  win 
good  food  for  his  mouth  and  fit  clothing  for  his  limbs, 
appears  to  be  master  in  every  zone ;  able  to  endure 
all  climates,  to  undertake  all  labors,  to  overcome  all 
trials ;  casting  nets  into  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  cradling 


niS    ETHNOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  81 


gold  in  the  Sacramento  valleys,  raising  dates  and 
lemons  in  Florida,  trapping  beavers  in  Oregon,  raising 
herds  of  kine  in  Texas,  spinning  thread  in  Massachu- 
setts, clearing  wood  in  Kansas,  smelting  iron  in  Penn- 
sylvania, talking  buncombe  in  Columbia,  writing  lea- 
ders in  New  York.  He  is  the  man  of  plastic  genius, 
of  enduring  character;  equally  at  home  among  the 
palm-trees  and  the  pines ;  in  every  latitude  the  guide, 
the  employer,  and  the  king  of  all."  * 

Reasoning  from  what  we  know  of  the  existing  varie- 
ties of  mankind  and  the  tribes  and  nationalities  em- 
braced by  these  varieties,  it  may  be  logically  inferred 
that  the  Caucasian  or  White  man  has  been  preceded 
by  the  Mongol,  Red  Indian,  and  Malay,  and  that  these 
in  turn  were  preceded  by  the  Ethiopian  or  Negro.  As 
the  White  men  of  the  American  States  are  the  imme- 
diate descendants  of  the  nations  of  Western  Europe, 
and  as  these  nations  were  descended  in  turn  from 
more  Oriental  stocks,  so  clearly  must  the  great  varie- 
ties have  been  descended  from  each  other,  the  later 
from  the  earlier,  the  higher  from  the  lower,  and  the 
lower  from  those  next  beneath  them.  In  fact,  the 
great  varieties  of  mankind  belong  rather  to  geological 
periods  than  to  geographical  regions,  for  though  we 
assign  to  them  different  habitats  on  our  maps,  it  is 
clear  that  physical  causes  alone  could  not  account  for 

*  Dixon's  New  America,  1867,  vol.  i,  p.  14. 


82  mais": 


their  differences,  physiological  and  psychological,  and 
we  are  compelled  to  call  in  that  principle  of  ascent  in 
time  which  antedates  the  lower  and  places  the  higher 
at  stages  later  and  later  according  to  their  superiority. 
It  is  true  we  have  no  historical  evidence  of  these  de- 
scents, for  they  took  place  long  before  and  beyond  the 
reach  of  all  history  and  tradition,  and  it  is  also  true 
that  geological  changes  must  have  obscured  more  or 
less  their  traces  by  the  sinking  of  old  lands  and  the 
elevation  of  new  ones ;  still,  if  there  be  such  a  thing 
as  creational  progression,  there  must  have  been  an 
ascent  from  lower  to  higher,  and  we  are  not  entitled 
to  regard  the  lowest  now  known  as  the  original  stock 
of  the  human  species.  In  fact,  the  idea  of  progression 
involves  the  belief  in  an  ascent  from  lower  to  higher, 
and  shuts  out  all  argument  to  the  contrary.  We  are 
nevertheless  aware  that  some,  founding  on  certain 
doctrinal  tenets,  deny  the  lowly  origin  of  the  human 
race,  and  contend  for  a  purer  and  higher,  from  which 
man  has  retrograded  and  declined.  In  dealing  with 
matters  of  science,  however,  we  must  abide  by  scien- 
tific methods,  and  all  that  can  be  naturally  drawn  from 
tradition,  from  history,  from  archaeological  relics  and 
from  geological  remains,  as  to  the  earliest  conditions 
of  mankind,  points  unmistakably  to  rude  and  primitive 
beginnings.  It  is  impossible,  indeed,  that  it  could  be 
otherwise,  for  man's  moral  sentiments,  that  is,  his 
whole  notions  of  right  and  wrong,  spring  out  of  his 


HIS  ETHNOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.  83 


relations  to  other  men,  and  grow  as  a  necessity  with 
the  growth  of  society;  and  we  cannot  conceive  of 
their  presence  without  such  relationships  to  call  thern 
into  existence  and  exercise.  Whatever  his  origin, 
man's  first  condition,  as  well  as  that  of  his  immediate 
descendants,  must  have  been  of  a  lowly  and  primitive 
nature,  with  everything  to  acquire,  and  no  accumu- 
ated  experience  to  assist.  Even  the  source  from 
which  those  who  hold  a  contrary  opinion  profess  to 
derive  their  beliefs,  refers  in  the  plainest  language  to 
men  covering  themselves  with  leaves  and  skins,  sub- 
sisting  on  fruits  and  flocks,  sheltering  themselves  in 
caves  and  tents,  prone  to  disobedience,  guilty  of  fratri- 
cide, and  in  no  way  differing  in  condition,  physically 
or  mentally,  from  the  rudest  races  of  the  present 
day. 

If  we  admit  progression,  we  must  of  necessity  con- 
sent to  the  lower  state  from  which  the  progress  has 
been  effected.  * 


*  These  opinions  find  ample  corroboration  in  a  paper  read  by 
Sir  John  Lubbock,  at  the  Dundee  meeting  of  the  British  Associa- 
tion, in  which,  after  an  elaborate  review  of  the  whole  argument, 
the  author  arrives  at  the  following  conclusions :  1 .  That  existing 
savages  are  not  the  descendants  of  civilized  ancestors:  2.  That 
the  primitive  condition  of  man  was  one  of  utter  barbarism ;  and  3. 
That  from  this  condition  several  races  have  independently  raised 
themselves.  "These  views,"  he  goes  on  to  say,  " follow,  I  think, 
from  strictly  scientific  considerations.  We  shall  not,  however,  be 
the  less  inclined  to  adopt  them  on  account  of  the  cheering  pros- 


84  max: 


Of  any  varieties  lower  in  point  of  organization  than 
the  lowest  of  the  present  day,  we  have  no  unques- 
tioned geological  evidence.  The  few  cranial  frao-- 
ments  found  in  Western  Europe  (we  refer  to  the  Nean- 
derthal and  other  skulls)  seem  abnormal  rather  than 
typical;  and  even  were  they  more  numerous,  and  all < 
of  a  type,  they  could  not  carry  us  back  beyond  times 
immediately  post-glacial,  nor  could  they  prove  aught 
of  the  regions  from  which  Em-ope  evidently  derived, 
by  way  of  descent,  its  flora  and  fauna.  If  men  lower 
than  the  Bushmen,  the  Andamanese,  the  Hill-tribes  of 
India,  or  the  Australian,  existed  in  bygone  epochs,  to 
Asia  and  Africa  geology  must  look  for  evidence  of  the 
fact :  and  not  till  these  regions  have  been  fully  ex- 
plored can  we  do  more  than  merely  admit  the  exist- 
ence of  extinct  varieties  as  a  logical  inference  from 
what  we  already  know  of  the  creational  law  of  con- 

pects  which  they  hold  out  for  the  future.  If  the  past  history  of 
man  has  been  one  of  deterioration,  we  have  but  a  groundless  hope 
of  future  improvement ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  if  the  past  has 
been  one  of  progress,  we  may  fairly  hope  that  the  future  will  be  so 
too  ;  that  the  blessings  of  civilization  will  not  only  be  extended  to 
other  countries  and  other  nations,  but  that  even  in  our  own  land 
they  will  be  rendered  more  general  and  more  equable,  so  that  we 
shall  not  see  before  us  always,  as  now,  multitudes  of  our  own 
fellow-countrymen  living  the  life  of  savages  in  our  very  midst, 
neither  possessing  the  rough  advantages  and  real,  though  coarse, 
pleasures  of  savage  life,  nor  yet  availing  themselves  of  the  far 
higher  and  more  noble  opportunities  which  lie  withinthe  reach  of 
civilized  man." 


niS    ETHNOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  85 


tinuity  and  progress.  And  if  we  accept  the  inference 
of  their  existence,  we  must  believe  in  their  necessarily- 
lower  organization  and  inferior  intellectual  attain- 
ments. 

If,  then,  (and  this  brings  us  to  our  third  proposition,) 
there  has  been  an  ascent  of  tribes  and  nationalities  from 
earlier  and  lower  nationalities,  (and  of  this  there  can  be 
no  doubt ;)  and  if  the  superior  and  advancing  gradually 
absorbs  or  annihilates  the  inferior  and  stationary,  (and 
of  this  there  can  be  as  little  doubt ;)  it  is  clear  that  the 
lower  varieties  must  be  the  more  ancient,  and  the 
higher  the  more  recent.  In  this  way  we  arrive  at  the 
conclusion  that  the  Indo-European  or  white  man  is  the 
most  recent  variety,  and  that  the  colored  varieties  are, 
stage  by  stage,  according  to  their  inferiority,  of  greater 
antiquity.  In  this  way  also  we  may  conclude  that  as 
the  higher  varieties  are  ascensive  developments  from 
the  lower,  so  in  all  likelihood  there  has  been  an  ascent 
from  lower  and  earlier  varieties  that  have  long  since 
become  extinct.  What  the  form  and  features,  what  the 
intellectual  capacity  and  capabilities  of  such  extinct 
races,  we  have  no  knowledge  and  may  never  have  ;  but 
clearly  all  analogy  favors  the  inference  that  the  differ- 
ence between  them  and  the  lowest  form  of  Negro  may 
have  been  as  great  or  even  greater  than  that  which 
exists,  physically  and  intellectually,  between  the  highest 
European  and  the  lowest  Ethiopian.     Of  these  extinct 


f 


86 


MAN. 


varieties  ethnology  gives  no  information ;  and  for  all 
that  preceded  the  existing  order  of  tilings  we  must 
appeal,  as  will  be  done  in  a  subsequent  section,  to 
geology,  and  the  appointed  order  of  creational  devel- 
opment as  revealed  by  palaeontology. 


FUNCTIONAL  KELATIONS. 

Physical  and  Mental  Functions  in  common  with  other  Animals 

Man  Improvable  and  Progressive — Influence  and  Results  of 
this  Progression — Man  a  Modifier  of  Nature — Spread  and 
Ascension  of  the  Higher,  and  Decline  and  Extinction  of  the 
Lower  Varieties — Oxxr&Fourth  Proposition. 

In  virtue  of  his  animal  nature,  geographical  position, 
and  racial  differences,  man,  like  other  creatures,  has 
certain  functions  or  duties  which  he  is  necessitated  to 
perform.  Like  other  animals,  he  must  procure  food 
and  shelter,  and  this  duty  will  be  less  or  more  arduous 
according  to  his  situation  on  the  earth's  surface.  He 
must  also  protect  himself  from  the  attacks  of  other 
animals,  and  especially  from  those  of  his  own  kind  ; 
and  this  he  will  be  enabled  to  do  in  proportion  to  his 
superior  strength  and  skill  and  the  nature  of  the  posi- 
tion he  occupies.  But  while  in  virtue  of  his  animal 
nature  he  must  perform  these  functions  in  common 
with  other  creatures,  there  are  other  duties  arising 
from  his  superior  organization  and  intellectual  endow- 


88 


MAN  : 


ments  which  are  peculiar  to  himself,  and  which  he 
alone  is  destined  to  perform.  Walking  erect,  capable 
of  turning  readily  to  all  sides,  possessed  of  those  won- 
derful instruments  the  arm  and  hand,  and  gifted  with 
a  mind  to  direct  their  operations,  in  functional  per- 
formance he  immeasurably  excels  all  other  animals. 
As  a  tool  and  implement  maker  he  acquires  new  power 
over  the  opposing  forces  of  nature  ;  and  as  a  fire-kin- 
dler  and  machine-inventor  he  increases  that  power  ten- 
thousand-fold.  But  man  is  not  merely  a  fabricator  of 
mechanical  tools,  he  is  also  an  inventor  of  intellectual 
tools,  of  political,  social,  moral,  and  religious  schemes, 
by  which  he  at  once  promotes  his  own  comfort,  and 
secures  the  improvement  of  his  successors.  Endowed 
with  the  gift  of  language,  and  capable  of  recording  his 
experiences,  generation  after  generation  he  advances 
in  knowledge,  and  thus,  unlike  other  animals,  he  is 
improvable  and  progressive — improvable  in  the  indi- 
vidual and  progressive  in^the  race.  The  most  highly 
endowed  and  docile  of  the  lower  animals  remain  now 
as  they  ever  were ;  the  lowest  of  the  human  race  is 
always  capable  of  some  improvement.  The  range  of 
the  former  is  fixed  and  limited,  that  of  the  latter  seems 
illimitable.  It  is  thisjmprovable  intellect  in  man  that 
enables  him  to  subjugate  and  adapt  the  forces  of 
nature :  winds,  currents,  heat,  light,  electricity,  and 
the  like ;  and  just  in  proportion  to  this  subjugation 
and  adaptation  does  mankind  ascend  in  the  scale  of 


HIS    FUNCTIONAL    RELATIONS.  89 


civilization.  Where  man  cannot  subdue  the  forces  of 
nature,  they  dominate  over  him ;  and  just  in  propor- 
tion to  this  victory,  so  will  ever  be  his  material  and  in- 
tellectual advancement. 

Already  man  has  investigated  and  turned  to  his  aid 
many  of  the  forces  of  nature,  reduced  the  metallic  ores, 
and  constructed  machinery  of  marvellous  capabilities ; 
and  as  he  advances  we  may  fairly  believe  there  is  no 
natural  force,  however  subtle  or  however  powerful, 
that  is  not  destined  to  come  under  his  mastery  and 
adaptation.  It  is  this  power  of  adaptation  that  marks 
in  an  especial  manner  the  progressive  from  the  declin- 
ing races  of  mankind  ;  and  we  may  safely  hold  it  as  a 
matter  of  faith,  that  according  to  the  possession  of  this 
power  are  certain  races  destined  to  advance,  and  others 
as  certainly  doomed  to  extinction.  In  virtue  of  his 
civilization  man  extirpates,  disseminates,  and  cultivates 
plant-life ;  extirpates,  disseminates,  and  domesticates 
animal-life  ;  and  extirpates  or  civilizes  his  fellow-men. 
In  his  spread  over  the  earth,  and  as  population  in- 
creases, man  must  necessarily  raise  an  increased  sup- 
ply of  food  by  artificial  means,  and  thus  he  cultivates 
some  plants  and  extirpates  others.  He  also  transfers 
the  plants  of  one  region  to  another,  and  thus  becomes 
the  instrument  of  new  distributions  and  arrangements. 
The  lower  animals  may  occasionally  do  the  same,  and 
on  a  limited  scale,  but  this  unintentionally  ;  whereas 
with  man  it  is  the  work  of  design,  and  ever  increasing 


90  man  : 


with  his  requirements.  In  like  manner  lie  extirpates, 
disseminates,  and  domesticates  animals,  destroying 
those  that  are  noxious  and  hostile,  carrying  from  one 
resrion  to  another  those  that  are  useful  (and  occasion- 
ally  by  accident  some  that  are  injurious),  and  domes- 
ticating and  increasing  in  a  wonderful  manner  those  on 
whom  he  relies  for  his  food,  clothing,  and  assistance  in 
his  daily  labors.  Indeed,  wherever  man  settles  down 
he  becomes  a  modifier  of  nature,  and  as  one  portion  of 
nature  is  intimately  associated  with  every  other  por- 
tion, so  every  modification  ramifies  and  extends  far 
beyond  the  circle  of  direct  interference.  The  felling 
of  forests  and  the  drainage  of  land,  for  example,  affect 
climate,  and  with  the  slightest  change  in  climate  arises 
a  whole  round  of  alteration  in  plants,  and  consequently 
also  in  the  animals  that  subsist  upon  them.  The  ex- 
tirpation of  certain  plants  may  lead  to  the  destruction 
or  removal  of  certain  animals,  and  with  the  destruction 
of  these  animals  others  may  so  increase  as  to  effect  the 
destruction  of  a  second  set  of  plants,  thus  involving  the 
extinction  or  removal  of  a  third  set  of  animals,  and  so 
on  through  interminable  ramifications.  In  this  way 
man  has  materially  interfered  with  the  distribution  of 
plants  and  animals,  and  this  more  especially  since  the 
white  man  of  Europe  became  a  settler  in  the  Americas, 
in  South  Africa,  Australia,  and  New  Zealand. 

And  just  as  man,  in  his  progress  to  civilization  and 
refinement,  interferes  with  the  natural  distribution  of 


HIS    FUNCTIONAL    RELATIONS.  91 


plant-life  and  animal  life,  so  in  a  similar  manner  lie  in- 
terferes with  the  distribution  of  his  own  race,  civilizing 
and  amalgamating  with  those  who  are  nearly  related, 
and  extirpating  those  who  are  widely  different  and  in- 
capable of  civilization.  Wherever  there  is  incapacity 
for  civilization,  irresistible  as  doom  itself  the  advancing 
variety  will  pass  over  and  absorb  the  stationary  ;  and 
the  higher  the  civilization  of  the  aggressive  race  the 
more  rapid  and  thorough  the  extermination  of  the  in- 
ferior and  declining.  In  this  way,  and  under  the  rapid 
advancement  of  the  white  man  melt  away  the  Red  In- 
dian from  America,  the  Bushman  and  Hottentot  from 
South  Africa,  and  the  Aborigines  from  Tasmania  and 
Australia.  Such  appears  to  be,  and  such  seems  to 
have  ever  been,  the  course  and  order  of  nature.  The 
higher  and  advancing  has  ever  passed  over  the  inferior 
and  stationary  ;  the  older  and  effete  must  ever  make 
way  for  the  recent  and  vigorous.  The  whole  history 
of  mankind  is  but  a  record  of  aggression  and  subjuga- 
tion, of  progress  and  extinction.  Wave  after  wave  has 
passed  over  the  historic  platform  of  Asia  and  Europe, 
the  latest  ever  obliterating  that  which  went  before, 
and  ever  assuming  fairer  and  nobler  proportions.  And 
as  with  nationalities,  so  with  varieties  in  a  broader 
sense ;  the  recent  and  superior  will  ever  spread,  the 
earlier  and  inferior  must  coincidently  dwindle  away 
before  them.  Bound  by  the  obligations  of  enlightened 
humanity,  the  white  man  may  and  must  endeavor  to 


92 


man  : 


civilize  and  ameliorate  the  condition  of  his  less  enli«;ht- 
ened  and  colored  brethren  ;  but  no  humanizing  scheme, 
however  anxious  or  earnest,  can  ever  arrest  that  law 
which  has  destined  the  progression  of  the  human  race, 
the  extinction  of  the  inferior,  and  the  rise  and  spread 
of  the  higher  varieties.  Humanly  speaking,  it  is  only 
in  this  way  that  the  progressive  advancement  of  man- 
kind can  ever  be  attained  ;  rationally,  it  is  the  only 
method  the  human  mind  can  comprehend  and  appre- 
ciate. 

It  is  in  vain  to  talk,  as  some  well-meaning  but  sadly- 
misinformed  men  often  do,  of  the  civilizing  and  ame- 
liorating influences  of  admixture  and  amalgamation. 
There  can  be  no  permanent  amalgamation  of  races 
that  are  widely  different,  no  admixture  of  superior 
and  inferior  types,  which  does  not  lead  in  the  long  run 
either  to  the  extinction  of  the  inferior  or  to  the  debase- 
ment of  the  superior.  The  whole  testimony  of  his- 
tory, whatever  it  is  worth,  is  against  this  presumption, 
and  our  knowledge  of  all  recent  attempts  directly 
refutes  it.  "It  may  be  claimed  without  hesitation," 
says  a  transatlantic  writer,*  who  has  had  ample  oppor- 
tunities of  studying  the  results  of  admixture  in  the 
New  World,  "that  the  wide  physical,  intellectual,  and 
moral  differences  which  all  history  and  observation 
have  distinguished  as  existing   between  the   various 


*  Notes  on  Central  America.     By  E.  G.  Squier.     Boston,  1855. 


HIS    FUXCTIOXAL    EELATIONS.  93 


families  of  man,  can  be  no  longer  regarded  as  the  con- 
sequences of  accident  or  of  circumstances  ;  that  is  to 
sa}r,  it  has  come  to  be  understood  that  their  physical, 
moral,  and  intellectual  traits  are  radical  and  perma- 
nent, and  that  there  can  be  no  admixture  of  widely- 
separated  families,  or  of  superior  with  inferior  races, 
■which  can  be  harmonious,  or  otherwise  than  disastrous 
in  its  consequences.  Anthropological  science  has  de- 
termined the  existence  of  two  laws  of  vital  importance 
in  their  application  to  man  and  nations.  First,  That 
in  all  cases  where  a  free  amalgamation  takes  place 
between  two  different  stocks,  unrestrained  by  what  is 
sometimes  called  prejudice,  but  which  is  in  fact  a 
natural  instinct,  the  result  is  the  final  and  absolute  ab- 
sorption of  one  in  the  other.  This  absorption  is  more 
rapid  as  the  races  or  families  thus  brought  in  contact 
approximate  in  type,  and  in  proportion  as  one  or  the 
other  preponderates  in  numbers  ;  that  is  to  say,  Nature 
perpetuates  no  human  hybrids,  as  for  instance  a  per- 
manent race  of  mulattoes.  Second,  That  all  viola- 
tions of  the  natural  distinctions  of  race,  or  of  those 
instincts  which  were  designed  to  perpetuate  the  supe- 
rior races  in  their  purity,  invariably  entail  the  most 
deplorable  results,  affecting  the  bodies,  intellects,  and 
moral  perceptions  of  the  nations  who  are  thus  blind 
to  the  wise  designs  of  Nature  and  unmindful  of  her 
laws.  In  other  words,  the  offspring  of  such  combina- 
tions or  amalgamations  are  not  only  generally  deficient 


1 

94  man : 


in  physical  constitution,  in  intellect,  and  in  moral 
restraint,  but  to  a  degree  which  often  contrasts  un- 
favorably with  any  of  the  original  stocks. 

"In  no  respect  are  these  deficiencies  more  obvious 
than  in  matters  affecting  government.     We  need  only 
point   to   the  anarchical  states  of  Spanish  America  to 
verify  the   truth   of  the  propositions   here  laid  down. 
In  Central  and  South  America,  and  in  Mexico,  we  find 
a  people  not  only  demoralized  from  the  unrestrained 
association   of  different   races,    but  also  the  superior 
stocks  becoming  gradually  absorbed  in  the  lower,  and 
their  institutions  disappearing  under  the  relative  bar- 
barism  of  which  the  latter  are  the  exponents.     It  is 
impossible,  while  conceding  all  the  influence  which  can 
be  rationally  claimed  for  other  causes,  to  resist  the 
conviction  that  the  disasters  which  have  befallen  these 
countries  are  due  to  a  grand  practical  misconception 
of  the  just  relations  of  the  races  which  compose  them. 
The  Indian  does  not  possess,  still  less  the  South  Sea 
Islander,    and  least  of  all  the  Negro,  the  capacity  to 
comprehend  the  principles  which  enter  into  the  higher 
order  of  civil  and  political  organizations  ;    his  instincts 
and  his  habits  are  inconsistent  with  their  development, 
and   no  degee  of  education   can  teach  him  to  under- 
stand and  practise  them."     .     .     .     "  To  the  under- 
standing  of  intelligent   and  reflecting  men,  who  are 
superior    to   the  partisan  and  sectional   issues  of  the 
hour,"  he  continues,  "these  considerations  cannot  fail 


HIS    FUNCTIONAL    EELATIONS.  95 


to  appeal  with  controlling  force ;  for  if  the  United 
States,  as  compared  with  the  Spanish  American  re- 
publics, has  achieved  an  immeasurable  advance  in  all 
the  elements  of  greatness,  that  result  is  eminently  due 
to  the  rigid  and  inexorable  refusal  of  the  dominant 
Teutonic  stock  to  debase  its  blood,  impair  its  intellect, 
lower  its  moral  standard,  or  peril  its  institutions,  by 
intermixture  with  the  interior  and  subordinate  races 
of  man.  In  obedience  to  the  ordinances  of  Heaven, 
it  has  ^rescued  half  a  continent  from  savage  beasts 
and  still  more  savage  men,  whose  period  of  existence 
has  terminated,  and  who  must  give  place  to  higher 
organizations  and  a  superior  life.  Short-sighted  phi- 
lanthropy may  lament,  and  sympathy  drop  a  tear  as  it 
looks  forward  to  the  total  disappearance  of  the  lower 
forms  of  humanity,  but  the  laws  of  Nature  are  irrever- 
sible, it  is  the  will  of  God !  " 

By  these  means  and  by  these  laws — and  so  far  as 
science  can  perceive  none  other  have  ever  operated  or 
now  operate — the  earth,  instead  of  remaining  the 
abode  of  rude  and  savage  tribes,  becomes  more  and 
more  the  home  of  intelligent  and  civilized  men,  capa- 
ble of  appreciating  its  bounties  and  comprehending 
the  power,  wisdom,  and  goodness  by  which  it  has 
been  instituted  and  sustained.  The  higher  the  ascent 
of  the  human  race,  the  more  clearly  will  they  perceive 
their  relations  to  external  nature,  to  God,  and  to  their 
fellow-men ;  and  thus  the   gradual  extinction  of  the 


96  man : 


inferior  varieties  and  the  spread  of  the  higher  become, 
under  the  operation  of  a  great  natural  law,  one  of  the 
means  by  which  the  Creator  is  glorified  in  his  works, 
and  man  more  and  more  blessed  through  their  devel- 
opment. As  the  ascensive  varieties  of  mankind  per- 
ceive more  clearly  their  relations  to  external  nature, 
and  it  is  only  in  the  higher  varieties  that  this  percep- 
tion manifests  itself,  the  more  will  they  conform  their 
conduct  to  the  methods  of  nature,  thereby  not  only 
augmenting  their  own  happiness,  but  accelerating  the 
ascensive  progress  of  their  successors.  The  more  fully 
that  man  understands  his  relations  to  the  God  of 
nature — and  the  most  bigoted  opponent  of  these  views 
must  admit  that  it  is  only  among  the  higher  races  that 
anything  like  rational  notions  are  entertained  of  a 
Creator — the  purer  will  be  his  religion  and  the  deeper 
his  devotion.  The  more  also  that  man  understands 
his  relations  to  his  fellow-men,  the  higher  his  concep- 
tions and  the  more  active  his  discharge  of  those  moral 
obligations  which  constitute  the  bond  and  union  of  all 
human  brotherhood.  It  may  be  that  sin  and  suffering, 
vice  and  misery,  cold-hearted  indifference  and  absolute 
cruelty,  are  to  be  found  among  civilized  as  well  as 
among  savage  nations  ;  but  no  unbiassed  reasoner  can 
gainsay  that  personal  liberty,  right  to  property,  res- 
pect to  life,  domestic  affection,  truth,  honor,  and  all 
the  other  social  virtues,  find  a  wider  recognition  and 
practice  among  the  white  than  among  the  colored  and 


HIS    FUNCTIONAL    RELATIONS.  97 


inferior  varieties  of  our  race.  If  it  were  not  so,  civil- 
ization would  be  a  delusion,  and  intellectual  cultiva- 
tion not  more  to  be  coveted  than  savage  ignorance  and 
brutal  superstition. 

Nor  let  it  be  forgotten  that  the  functional  obliga- 
tions of  the  man  can  never  be  superseded  or  com- 
pounded for  by  those  of  the  race  ;  and  that  no  abstract 
notions  respecting  the  upward  progress  of  the  species 
can  interfere  with  the  bounden  efforts  of  the  individ- 
ual. As  no  one  can  discharge  for  another  the  physical 
functions  of  his  animal  nature,  so  no  general  arrange- 
ment can  ever  relieve  the  individual  of  the  responsi- 
bility that  attaches  to  the  fulfilment  of  his  own  social 
and  moral  duties.  As  the  character  of  a  societv  de- 
pends  upon  the  character  of  those  composing  it,  so 
the  advancement  of  a  race  must  depend  upon  the 
progressive  efforts  of  its  component  members ;  and 
under  this  view  the  functional  relations  of  every  man — 
that  is,  his  relations  to  external  nature,  to  his  God,  and 
to  «his  neighbor — take  a  higher  aim  and  assume  a 
wider  significance.  It  is  something  for  the  individual 
mind  to  be  conscious  of  its  own  attainments ;  it  is 
something  more  to  have  the  feeling  that  it  is  contri- 
buting— not  negatively  by  refrainment  from  evil,  but 
positively  by  the  performance  of  good — to  the  general 
advancement  of  the  species. 

And  this,  be  it  remembered,  is  always  best  accom- 
plished by  every  one  manif  sting  to  the  utmost  of  his 

7 


98  man : 

power  the  gifts  of  his  own  individual  nature.  Phy- 
sically and  mentally,  we  have  much — indeed  the  most 
of  what  we  possess — in  common  with  our  fellow-men  ; 
but  beyond  this  every  one  has  his  own  individuality — 
something  that  distinguishes  him  from  other  men, 
and  which,  as  a  special  endowment,  was  clearly  de- 
signed to  subserve  some  important  purpose ;  and  it  is 
for  the  maintenance  and  manifestation  of  this  indi- 
viduality in  our  functional  relations  that  philosophy 
contends.  For,  as  in  the  material  world  all  growth 
and  movement  take  place  through  the  action  and 
reaction  of  dissimilars  ;  so  in  the  moral  and  intellec- 
tual there  can  be  no  advancement  save  through  the 
interactions  of  individual  opinion.  It  is  well,  there- 
fore, to  bear  in  mind  that  this  individuality,  whether 
in  nations  or  in  individuals,  is  a  thing  that  may  be 
directed,  but  cannot  with  impunity  be  suppressed ;  a 
thing  that,  as  it  has  existence  in  nature,  so  it  must 
have  exercise  in  the  performance  rof  those  functions 
which  nature  has  rendered  imperative. 

There  can  be  no  greater  delusion,  therefore,  as  re- 
gards  man's  functional  relations,  than  the  expectation 
that  either  individuals  or  nations  will  ever  be  brought 
to  the  same  beliefs,  or  to  one  common  course  of 
action.  So  long  as  there  are  aboriginal  differences  or 
individualities,  so  long  will  men  and  nations  continue 
to  differ  in  thought  and  practice,  and  through  these 
differences  continue  to  elicit  the  true  and  progressive. 


HIS    FUNCTIONAL    RELATIONS.  99 


No  doubt,  the  higher  man's  knowledge,  and  the 
nearer  his  approach  to  truth,  the  less  will  these 
differences  become ;  but  to  endeavor  to  suppress 
them  in  conformity  with  any  conventional  notions 
were  a  bar  to  all  activity  and  improvement.  It  may 
at  first  sight  seem  an  evil  that  there  should  continue 
to  be  differences  and  contentions,  but  the  contentions 
arise  from  a  misconception  of  the  purport  of  this  in- 
dividuality ;  and  not  till  men  have  learned  to  look 
upon  it  as  a  thing  to  be  respected — a  gift  to  be 
directed  and  not  to  be  suppressed — will  it  have  its 
full  efficiency  in  the  promotion  of  human  progress. 
Individually,  it  is  the  only  thing  we  can  really  call 
our  own ;  as  we  value  it  for  ourselves,  let  us  also  re- 
spect it  in  others,  whether  as  in  man  to  man,  or  as 
in  nationality  to  nationality. 

Looking,  therefore,  at  man  in  his  functional  rela- 
tions, our  fourth  proposition  is,  that  like  other  animals 
he  has  certain  duties  to  perform  purely  of  a  physical 
nature,  and  which  are  rendered  imperative  by  the  re- 
quirements of  existence.  In  virtue,  however,  of  his 
higher  organization  and  intellect,  he  can,  within  cer- 
tain limits,  subjugate  and  adapt  the  forces  of  nature, 
and  thus  acquire  a  mastery^over  obstacles  which  no 
other  animal  can,  and  this  mastery  will  be  in  direct 
proportion  to  his  intelligence  and  cultivation.  And 
further,    that   while    other   animals   but   slowly   and 


100  man: 

within  restricted  limits  affect  the  distribution  of  plants 
and  other  animals,  man  becomes  a  modifier  and  sub- 
creator  as  it  were — here  extirpating  and  transferring, 
there  cultivating  and  disseminating ;  and  even  as  re- 
gards his  own  species,  civilizing  and  exterminating, 
according  to  the  natural  capacity  or  inaptitude  of  the 
inferior  races  for  civilization  and  advancement.  We 
say  civilizing  and  extirpating,  for  there  can  be  no  do- 
mestication of  man  as  there  is  domestication  of  the 
lower  animals.  To  domesticate  is  to  enslave,  and  na- 
ture has  never  yet  permitted  the  institution  of  perma- 
nent enslavement,  as  it  has  provided  for  and  fostered 
that  of  permanent  domestication.  And  finally,  that 
these  functional  relations  are  in  accordance  with  a 
great  law  of  natural  progression,  by  which  the  devel- 
ment  of  newer  and  higher  races  shall  ever  be  coinci- 
dent with  the  extinction  of  the  earlier  and  inferior. 

Such  are  the  relations — zoological,  geographical, 
ethnological,  and  functional — which  constitute  man's 
Where,  or  the  place  he  now  occupies  in  the  scheme 
of  creation,  and  from  which  the  following  inferences 
may  fairly  be  deduced  :  1.  That  adaptive  modifica- 
tion of  pre-existing  structures,  rather  than  independent 
creation  of  new  ones,  seems  to  be  the  method  of  na- 
ture in  the  production  of  newer  and  higher  life-forms, 
and  that  in  this  respect  man  comes  under  the  same 
category  as  the  rest  of  his  fellow-creatures.     2.    That 


HIS  FUNCTIONAL  EELATIONS.       101 


man,  like  other  animals,  is  influenced  by  external 
conditions  ;  and  that  while,  in  accordance  with  a 
great  creational  plan,  adaptive  modification  is  pro- 
ducing newer  and  higher  forms,  geographical  sur- 
roundings are  co-ordinately  instrumental  in  favoring 
the  same  results.  3.  That  in  obedience  to  a  great 
progressional  law,  and  under  the  influence  of  geo- 
graphical conditions,  man  passes  into  newer  and 
higher  varieties — the  lower  varieties  being  thus  neces- 
sarily the  earlier  and  the  higher,  and  ascensive  the 
more  recent ;  and  4.  That,  gifted  with  improvable  v 
and  progressive  functions,  man  subjugates  and  adapts 
the  forces  of  nature,  rising  higher  and  higher  in  the 
aggregate  or  as  a  species ;  the  inferior  varieties  disap- 
pearing before  the  spread  of  the  higher  and  more 
civilized.  Admitting  these  inferences,  and  the  facts 
from  which  they  are  drawn,  we  will  be  better  pre- 
pared to  understand  man's  history  and  origin,  that  is, 
his  Whence,  as  well  as  to  follow  more  clearly  his 
Whither,  or  the  progressive  destiny  that  lies  before 
him.  The  whole  forms  one  great  successional  cate- 
gory of  events,  in  which  the  past  merges  into  the 
present,  and  the  present  into  the  future,  and  which 
we  can  only  understand  in  proportion  to  our  know- 
ledge of  the  existing  relations  and  operations  of  the 
universe. 


WHENCE? 


HISTORICAL  RELATIONS. 

Tradition  Uncertain  and  Unreliable — All  History  Recent  and  Par- 
tial— Discrepancies  in  Chronological  Systems — Inferences  as 
to  Man's  Antiquity  from  the  known  rate  of  Progress  in  Civiliz- 
ation and  Refinement — Our  Fifth  Proposition. 

Admitting  man's  existing  relations,  or  the  position 
he  now  occupies  in  nature,  let  us  next  try  to  discover 
what  light  can  be  thrown  on  the  antiquity  of  his  spe- 
cies relatively  to  the  antiquity  of  other  species.  For 
this  purpose  we  must  appeal  to  History  in  the  first 
place,  and  where  History  fails  us  we  must  turn  to  the 
record  preserved  in  the  earth's  rock-formations,  and 
which  Geology  is  striving  to  interpret.  Having  ob- 
tained some  notion  of  his  antiquity,  or,  in  other  words, 
having  traced  him  nearer  and  nearer  to  his  origin,  we 
may  discover  some  indication  of  the  nature  of  that  ori- 
gin, and  the  process  by  which  it  was  effected.  In  the 
prosecution  of  this  inquiry,  science  has  to  contend  not 
only  with  numerous  difficulties  but  with  inveterate 
prejudices — difficulties  inasmuch  as  both  historical  and 


106  man : 


geological  records  are  obscure  and  imperfect,  and  pre- 
judices arising  from  early  and  widely  accepted  beliefs. 
Notwithstanding  these  difficulties  and  prejudices,  an 
attempt  must  be  made  ;  and  though  science  in  the 
mean  time  may  foil  in  arriving  at  satisfactory  conclu- 
sions, she  may  succeed  in  indicating  the  way  to  more 
rational  convictions,  both  as  to  the  time  man  has  been 
struggling  upward  on  this  globe,  and  the  nature  of 
the  source  from  which  he  started.  And  this,  be  it  ob- 
served, is  always  something  gained  ;  the  unsettling  of 
former  prejudices  being  next  to  the  establishment  of 
new  convictions. 

Tn  appealing  to  history  for  any  information  respect- 
ing the  antiquity  and  origin  of  man,  it  will  be  readily 
admitted  that  the  response  must  necessarily  be  faint 
and  unintelligible.  All  tradition  on  the  subject  is 
vao-ue  and  unreliable :  all  written  historv  is  recent, 
partial,  and  uncertain.  And  even  where  no  uncer- 
tainty need  be,  historical  facts  are  so  frequently  ob- 
scured by  traditional  beliefs  that  it  is  often  impossible 
to  separate  the  real  from  the  unreliable.  ' '  In  the  his- 
tory of  ancient  nations,"  as  has  been  truly  remarked 
by  Sir  J.  Gardner  Wilkinson,  "the  early  portion 
usually  consists  of  mere  fable,  either  from  real  events 
having  been  clothed  in  an  allegorical  garb,  or  from  the 
substitution  of  purely  fanciful  tales  for  facts  in  conse- 
quence of  the  deficiency  of  real  data  ;  to  this  succeeds 
an  era  when,  as  manners  and  habits   become  settled, 


HIS    HISTORICAL    RELATIONS.  107 


amidst  fable  and  allegory  some  descriptions  of  actual 
events  are  introduced ;  and,  at  length,  history,  assum- 
ing the  exalted  character  that  becomes  it,  is  contented 
with  the  simple  narration  of  fact,  and  fable  is  totally 
discarded.  But  such  is  the  disposition  in  the  human 
mind  to  believe  the  miraculous,  that,  even  at  a  period 
when  no  one  would  dare  to  introduce  a  tale  of  wonder 
unsupported  by  experience,  credit  still  continues  to  be 
attached  to  the  traditions  of  early  history,  as  though 
the  sanction  of  antiquity  were  sufficient  to  entitle  im- 
possibilities to  implicit  belief."*  Where  fable,  fact, 
and  allegory  get  so  commingled,  it  will  be  readily  seen 
how  little,  either  direct  or  suggestive,  can  be  drawn 
from  the  historical  element  of  our  inquiry.  "It  is 
easier,  indeed,"  as  remarked  by  Bacon,  "to  extract 
truth  from  error  than  from  confusion." 

It  would  be  waste  of  time,  in  the  present  state  of 
our  knowledge,  to  appeal  to  the  chronologies  of  the 
Chinese  and  Hindoos,  for  even  could  they  be  brought 
within  the  category  of  critically  substantiated  history, 
and  did  carry  us  back  some  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
years,  they  give  no  indication  of  the  stages  through 
which  man  has  passed,  nor  other  than  the  most  absurd 
and  fabulous  accounts  of  his  origin.  There  may  be 
some  germs  of  truth  in  their  dynasties  and  epochs,  but 
clearly  tbey  can  form  no  foundation  for  rational  con- 

*  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  Ancient  Egyptians,  vol.  i,  second 
series. 


108  man : 


victions  respecting  man's  antiquity,  and  merely  impress 
us  with  a  vague  idea  of  the  vast  time  that  Eastern 
Asia  has  been  peopled  by  civilized  races.  We  say 
the  vast  time  that  Eastern  Asia  has  been  peopled,  for 
if  observers  like  the  missionary  fathers  have  been  con- 
strained to  admit  a  veritable  antiquity  to  Chinese 
records  of  five  or  six  thousand  vears,  what  shall  be 
said  to  the  ages  that  must  have  preceded  these  muni- 
ments, and  during  which  the  race  was  gradually  work- 
ing its  way  upward  from  nomadic  barbarism  to  a  posi- 
tion of  settled  industry,  and  to  the  establishment  of 
complicated  social  and  ethical  systems  ?  Nor  can 
much  more  be  said  in  favor  of  the  astronomical  record 
of  the  Cbaldees.  Carrying  us  backward  in  time  some 
three  or  four  hundred  thousand  years,  it  seems  incapa- 
ble of  verification  by  modern  astronomers,  and  we  can 
only  receive  it  as  a  vague  corroboration  of  the  high  an- 
tiquity of  the  human  race  in  the  region  to  which  it  re- 
fers. Even  were  it  reliable,  it  gives  no  indication  of 
the  successional  stages  of  man's  advancement,  nor  does 
it  lead,  any  more  than  the  chronologies  of  the  Chinese 
and  Hindoos,  to  the  faintest  conception  of  a  rational 
beginning  for  our  race.  And  yet  we  cannot  help  re- 
marking that  these  time-records,  wide  and  uncertain 
as  they  are,  seem  more  in  accordance  with  the  vasti- 
tude  of  time  implied  by  the  geological  relations  of  hu- 
man remains  than  other  chronologies  more  frequently 
appealed  to. 


HIS    HISTORICAL    RELATIONS.  109 


Nor  is  the  case  much  altered  when  the  research  is 
carried  into  Western  Asia  and  Egypt.  Egyptian 
allusions,  so  far  as  they  have  been  interpreted, 
•would  carry  us  much  beyond  the  ordinarily-received 
chronology  of  six  thousand  years,  but  they  do  not 
point  to  any  intelligible  beginning,  nor  trace  any  line 
of  descent,  beyond  a  few  dynastic  successions,  even 
for  their  own  nationality.  Whether  we  accept  the 
estimate  of  the  French  savatis,  who  ascribe  to  the 
oldest  Egyptian  monuments  an  antiquity  of  from 
eight  to  ten  thousand  years,  or  that  of  Chevalier 
Bansen,  who  doubles  the  amount,  we  are  not  in  the 
least  degree  assisted  to  any  definite  notion  respecting 
the  chronology  of  the  race  vdio  reared  these  monu- 
ments, and  who  must  have  existed  for  centuries  before 
they  had  acquired  the  power  to  construct  such  gigantic 
and  enduring  memorials.  Great  darkness,  in  like 
manner,  hangs  over  the  contemporaneous  nationalities 
of  Western  Asia,  whether  Assyrians,  Phoenicians,  or 
Hebrews ;  and  though  the  latter  have  left  a  circum- 
stantially-narrated account  which  has  deeply  influenced 
the  beliefs  of  modern  Europe,  that  account  is  of  itself 
so  much  a  matter  of  interpretation  and  calculation, 
that  the  widest  discrepancies  exist  between  the  esti- 
mates of  biblical  scholars  equally  earnest,  pious,  and 
learned.  Whether  we  turn  to  the  Romish  fathers,  or 
to  such  men  as  Usher,  Hales,  Newton,  Blair,  and 
Dufresnoy,  we  find  estimates  varying  from  four  thou- 


110  man: 


sand  to  seven  thousand  years ;  and  when  the  appeal 
is  made  to  some  German  divines  the  range  is  extended 
to  nearly  double  that  amount !  *  A  record  admitting 
of  such  wide  interpretations  by  scholars  equally  learned 
and  earnest,  is  clearly  one  upon  which  science  cannot 
base  her  conclusions,  and  all  the  less  that  it  is  a  list 
of  family  genealogies  rather  than  an  account  of  ethno- 
logical successions.  And  even  were  there  no  discre- 
pancies  in  interpretation,  and  no  doubt  as  to  the  order 
of  Hebrew  descent,  it  is  evident  that  no  record  can 
carry  us  back  to  the  beginnings  of  mankind,  to  those 
far-back  stages  of  primeval  life  during  which  language 
itself  can  do  little  more  than  express  the  necessities  of 
animal  existence. 

So  far  then  as  the  historical  element  is  concerned, 
it  throws  no  certain  light  on  man's  antiquity  ;  and 
when  it  is  considered  how  uncertain  and  debatable 
are  many  events  in  the  last  two  thousand  years  of 
European  history,  the  want  of  reliable  data  as  to 
man's  first  appearance  ceases  to  be  matter  of  surprise. 
Man  must  have  struggled  onward  and  upward  for 
ages  before  he  became  a  recorder  of  his  own  history, 


*  A  French  writer,  Desvignoles,  (Chronology  of  Sacred  History,) 
has  collected  above  two  hundred  different  calculations,  varying  from 
34S;?,  the  shortest,  to  G!)S4,  the  longest  period  said  to  have  elapsed 
between  the  creation  of  the  world  and  the  commencement  of  the 
Christian  era,  but  recently  the  discrepancies  have  become  wider 
and  much  more  perplexing  ! 


HIS    HISTORICAL    RELATIONS.  Ill 


and  when  lie  became  so  all  the  early  stages  of  his 
ascent  must  have  been  irretrievably  lost,  even  to  tradi- 
tion itself,  with  all  its  fertility  of  fancies  and  actions. 
Such,  indeed,  seems  to  be  the  unavoidable  course  of 
human  progress :  its  earliest  stages  utterly  lost  in 
the  forgetfnlness  of  barbarism,  the  middle  stages  dis- 
torted and  clouded  by  myths  and  fables,  and  only  the 
latest  assuming  the  orderly  sequence  and  reliability  of 
history.  It  is  with  the  existence  of  man  as  it  is  with 
the  life  of  the  individual.  We  may  commit  to  record 
from  early  youth,  and  carry  our  recollections  back  to 
the  days  of  childhood,  but  there 'lies  beyond  these  the 
blank  of  infancy,  which  bears  with  it  no  remembrance 
of  its  acts  and  no  consciousness  of  its  existence.  It 
is  in  vain,  therefore,  to  look  for  any  chronology  before 
man  learned  to  record  ;  hopeless  to  expect  anything 
like  certainty  from  the  tales  and  undated  memories  of 
tradition. 

As  far,  therefore,  as  history  is  concerned,  we  appeal 
in  vain  for  any  intelligible  response  as  to  the  antiquity 
of  the  human  race.  We  can  trace  back  a  few  of  its 
latest  and  leading  stages,  as  from  Saxon  to  Celt,  from 
Celt  to  Roman,  from  Roman  to  Greek,  from  Greek  to 
Phoenician  and  Hebrew,  and  from  Hebrew  to  Egyp- 
tian, Chaldean,  and  other  Orientals  ;  but  these  are 
only  a  few  of  its  most  recent  and  civilized  stages.  Of 
all  the  races  that  went  before,  world ng  their  way  on- 
ward and  upward  to^  the  civilization  of  which  these 


112  man: 


nationalities  were  the  successive  exponents,  we  have 
scarcely  the  trace  of  a  tradition,  and  are  left  in  utter 
ignorance  alike  of  their  chronological  sequence  and 
the  localities  they  possessed.  All,  then,  that  can  be 
fairly  and  honestly  affirmed  as  to  man's  historical  rela- 
tions is  this :  That  the  evolution  of  new  races  and 
nationalities  is  a  thing  of  slow  and  gradual  growth, 
and  as  many  nations  have  undoubtedly  risen  and  dis- 
appeared on  the  historic  and  traditional  platforms  of 
Asia  and  Europe,  the  antiquity  of  man,  even  in  these 
areas,  must  be  far,  unspeakably  far,  beyond  the  popu- 
lar chronology  of  six  or  seven  thousand  years ;  and 
further,  that  as  civilization  is  a  thing  of  slow  and 
gradual  evolution,  and  as  many  Asiatic  and  European 
peoples  have  successively  risen  to  high  degrees  of 
civilization  and  refinement,  so  the  legitimate  inference 
from  this  source  is  also  that  of  a  higher  antiquity  for 
mankind  in  Asia,  Northern  Africa,  and  Europe.  In- 
deed, whether  we  appeal  to  written  history  or  to  monu- 
mental evidence,  we  find  all  over  Southern  Asia  and 
Southern  Europe  different  phases  of  civilization, 
different  languages,  different  styles  of  architecture, 
and  different  forms  of  religious  worship,  all  of  which 
must  have  taken  thousands  of  years  for  their  elabora- 
tion, even  at  the  ratio  of  existing  progress,  and 
infinitely  more  in  times  when  the  arts  and  sciences, 
mechanical  appliances,  and  means  of  intercommuni- 
cation were  in  their  infancy  as  compared  with  those 


HIS    HISTORICAL    RELATIONS.  113 


of  the  present  day.  This  slow  evolution  of  new- 
peoples  with  new  civilizations,  new  languages,  new 
religions,  new  customs,  and  new  architectural  ideas,  is 
seldom  sufficiently  thought  over.  Were  it  otherwise, 
no  other  argument  would  be  necessary  to  expose  the 
absurdity  of  a  chronology  that  would  limit  the  exist- 
ence of  man  to  the  lapse  of  a  few  thousand  years. 

Let  the  question  be  fairly  and  reasonably  looked  at, 
as  between  men  anxious  and  earnest  to  arrive  at  the 
truth,  and  not  bound  to  defend  any  bias  or  preconcep- 
tion. No  matter  in  what  state,  intellectually  and 
morally,  man  originated,  (a  matter  which  will  be  con- 
sidered under  another  section,)  it  is  clear  that  in  time 
past,  as  at  present,  his  beginnings  in  every  region  have 
been  of  a  lowly  and  primitive  kind.  From  this  prim- 
itive condition  newer  and  advancing  nationalities  have 
had  to  be  evolved  ;  and  as  this  has  ever  been  (we  ap- 
peal to  all  history)  a  gradual  andjfluctuating  process, 
it  must  have  required  long  time  for  its  accomplishment. 
Lano-uao-e  has  also  had  to  be  elaborated — new  names 
for  new  objects,  and  new  phrases  to  express  their  rela- 
tions ;  and  this  also  requires  time,  to  say  nothing  of 
the  growth  of  new  languages  for  the  advancing  races, 
or  of  the  ages  required  for  the  invention  of  letters  and 
the  passage  of  oral  into  written  and  methodical  forms.* 

*  We  lay  no  stress  on  the  argument  against  linguistic  progression 
which  some  philologists  attenrpt^to  derive  from  the  grammatical 
structure  of  all  language.     Mind  is  essentially  methodical,  and 

8 


114  MAN. 


Man,  for  his  subsistence  and  comfort,  has  also  (at  least 
in  temperate  regions)  to  cultivate  certain  plants  and 
domesticate  certain  animals,  and  as  these  plants  and 
animals  are  naturally  restricted  to  limited  districts, 
they  have  had  to  be  carried  from  region  to  region  and 
acclimatized,  to  pass  into  new  varieties  and  breeds — ■ 
into  the  varieties  and  breeds  which  we  now  enjoy  ; 
and  all  this  must  have  taken  long  ages  for  its  accom- 
plishment. As  a  fabricator  of  mechanical  tools,  man 
has  also  had  to  pass  from  wood,  bone,  and  stone, 
which  lay  conspicuously  around  him  and  ready  for 
use,  to  the  metals ;  and  as  these  for  the  most  part 
occur  in  earthy  ores,  it  must  have  been  long  before  he 
learned  to  extract  them,  and  fashion  them  into  imple- 
ments and  machinery.  But  he  is  also  an  inventor  of 
intellectual  tools,  of  social,  political,  and  religious 
schemes,  by  which  he  secures  his  safety  and  progress ; 
and  as  these  schemes  have  presented  themselves  in  in- 
numerable forms  on  the  platforms  of  civilized  Asia, 
Europe,  and  Northern  Africa,  and  as  men  are  espe- 
cially tenacious  of  customs  and  observances,  and  slow 
to  accept  newer  forms,  the  time  required  for  the  elab- 
oration of  these  must  have  been  very  long,  historically 

cannot  convey  its  ideas  to  another  mind — however  few  and  simple 
these  ideas  may  be — without  following  the  order  in  which  they 
occur  to  itself.  In  this  way  language  assumes  a  connected  and 
methodical  form  long  before  grammarians  attempt  to  analyze  it. 
It  is  language  that  involves  grammar,  not  grammar  that  makes 
language. 


HIS    HISTORICAL    RELATIONS.  115 


speaking,  and  pre-historically  even  of  longer  duration. 
In  fine,  view  it  as  we  may,  no  history  gives  any  satis- 
factory idea  of  man's  antiquity  ;  and  whatever  rate  of 
progress  we  assume,  the  time  he  has  been  working  his 
way  onward  and  upward  through  the  various  races 
and  nationalities  of  Asia,  Northern  Africa,  and  Europe, 
must  vastly  exceed  the  limits  of  any  attempted  chron- 
ology. 

"We  may  venture  to  assert,"  (says  Baron  Bnnsen,* 
arguing  from  a  different  stand-point,  but  having  the 
same  chronological  object  in  view,)  "without  being 
charged  with  temerity  by  competent  authorities,  that 
in  consequence  of  Egyptian  researches,  the  arbitrary 
barriers  which  Jewish  superstition  and  Christian  sloth 
have  erected  upon  God's  free  field  of  human  history 
are  for  ever  broken  down.  The  ordinary  views  as  to 
the  existence  of  our  race  and  the  antiquity  of  its  records 
are  as  childish  as  were  the  ideas  and  assumptions  cur- 
rent fifty  years  ago  about  the  age  of  this  planet.  Partly 
owing  to  theological  prejudices,  and  partly  to  the  want 
of  a  thorough  philosophy  of  history,  the  views  of  the 
relations  and  bearings  of  general  history  have  been 
hitherto  as  inaccurate  as  the  results  would  be  if  an 
anatomist  should  attempt  to  restore  the  whole  organi- 
zation of  an  extinct  ichthyosaurus  from  the  dorsal 
bones  of  our  lower  lizards,  and  to  make  a  fore-short- 


Egypt's  Place  in  Universal  History,  vol.  iv,  p.  20. 


116  man  : 


ened  drawing  in  perspective  of  such  a  fanciful  object 
before  and  behind.  Would  it  be  a  matter  of  surprise 
if  such  a  drawing  should  finish  in  mythical  or  mystical 
arabesques,  and  the  whole  representation  had,  as  we 
say,  neither  head  nor  tail  ?  Yet,  such  is  literally  the 
case,  down  to  the  present  time,  with  the  frame-work 
of  general  history.  Sometimes  it  has  been  traced  out 
without  any  knowledge  of  facts,  sometimes  in  direct 
opposition  to  facts  which  had  been  long  established  by 
criticism.  The  conventional  system  excludes  the 
former  part  of  general  history,  and  displaces  the  latter 
part ;  the  entire  basis,  the  original  type  of  the  restora- 
tion, is  false  and  positively  absurd."  And  again,  (vol. 
5,)  "  The  computation  of  time  by  years  of  the  world, 
even  for  the  pre-Christian  history,  being  as  absurd  and 
irrational  as  it  is  for  the  epochs  of  the  earth  and  the 
universe,  must  be  abandoned  as  the  unscientific  assump- 
tion of  rabbins  and  scholastics,  which  has  grown  into 
a  wilful  mischievous  falsehood,  in  the  face  of  the  annals 
of  nature  and  of  mankind." 

Our  fifth  proposition  therefore  is,  that  as  concerns 
man's  antiquity,  neither  tradition,  monumental  re- 
mains, nor  written  history,  afford  any  certain  or  reli- 
able information  beyond  a  few  thousand  years ;  but 
that  we  may  safely  infer,  from  the  slow  rate  at  which 
nationalities  are  evolved  and  civilization  developed,  an 
existence  for  the  human  species  immeasurably  beyond 


HIS    HISTORICAL    RELATIONS.  117 


that  of  the  commonly  received  chronology.  We  ad- 
mit that  new  nationalities  and  races  may  be  evolved 
at  very  different  ratios,  according  to  the  geographical 
conditions  under  which  they  are  placed ;  but  the  most 
prejudiced  in  favor  of  a  limited  chronology  must  allow 
that  six  or  seven  thousand  years  seems  too  short  a 
period  for  the  evolution  of  the  civilized  races,  with 
different  forms  and  features,  different  languages,  dif- 
ferent religions,  different  architectures,  and  different 
laws  and  customs,  that  have  successively  appeared  and 
disappeared  in  the  old  world,  to  say  nothing  of  the  un- 
civilized and  pre-historic  peoples  that  must  necessarily 
have  preceded  them. 


GEOLOGICAL  RELATIONS. 

Eelative  Chronology  of  Geology — Nature  of  Geological  Evidence 
■ — Ages  of  Stone,  Bronze,  and  Iron — High  Antiquity  of  Man 
in  Western  Europe,  as  evidenced  by  Remains  of  Human  Art 
— Higher  Inferential  Antiquity  in  Asia  and  the  East — Our 
Sixth  Proposition. 

Seeing,  then,  that  so  little  certainty  respecting  the 
antiquity  of  man  is  to  be  obtained  from  historical 
Bources,  we  shall  now  inquire  what  light  geological 
investigation  has  recently  thrown  on  the  subject,  and 
especially  on  the  relative  chronology  of  those  races 
that  preceded  all  history.  It  is  obvious  that  in  every 
country  we  pass  backward,  from  the  operations  of  to- 
day to  those  of  our  ancestors,  and  from  these,  so  far 
as  they  are  recorded,  to  those  of  which  we  have  no 
written  account,  and  which  are  evidenced  by  architec- 
tural ruins,  sepulchral  monuments,  and  other  remains 
of  art.  Even  from  these  we  can  carry  the  inquiry 
into  more  primitive  ages,  when  man,  ignorant  of  the 
metals,    fashioned    stone    implements,    sheltered    in 


IIIS     GEOLOGICAL     RELATIONS.  119 


caverns,  subsisted  alone  by  hunting  and  fishing,  and 
left  traces  of  his  presence  in  the  relics  of  his  rude 
feasts,  and  in  his  lost  or  cast-away  weapons.  These 
remains  being  found  partly  on  the  surface,  partly  im- 
bedded in  the  soil,  and  partly  covered  over  by  sands, 
gravels,  peat-mosses,  lake-silts,  cave-earths,  and  other 
superficial  accumulations,  belong  to  the  domains  of 
archaeology  and  geology:  to  archaeology  so  far  as  the 
determination  of  the  race  who  left  them  is  concerned, 
and  to  geology  for  an  approximation  to  their  relative 
antiquity.  We  say,  relative  antiquity,  for  geology, 
carrying  the  investigation  beyond  the  limits  of  history, 
can  assign  no  dates  in  years  and  centuries,  but  simply 
state  the  relations  in  time  that  one  event  bears  to 
another  event.  Thus,  the  remains  of  an  animal  found 
at  two  feet  under  the  surface  of  a  peat-moss  must  be 
much  more  recent,  considering  the  slow  growth  of 
peat,  than  those  of  another  animal  occurring  at  the 
depth  of  twenty  feet ;  but  as  there  is  no  determined 
ratio  for  the  growth  of  peat,  the  geologist  cannot  affix 
a  date  to  either  relic,  nor  say  how  much  in  years  the 
entombment  of  the  one  preceded  the  entombment  of 
the  other.  Again,  an  animal  like  the  great  Irish  deer, 
unnoticed  in  history,  must  be  regarded  as  prehistoric 
and  of  high  antiquity,  and  any  human  remains  found 
in  unmistakable  connection  with  its  bones  must  be 
considered  as  contemporaneous.  But,  as  we  have  no 
assignable  chronology  for  the  Irish  deer,  so  we  can 


. 


- 

i 
Id    s  take  H 

... 
I 

• 

....  -• 

- 

-     - 

■     - 

■     -  - 

5  "  : 

-  -  -  . 

5  '     ■• 



-    & 

■ 

- 

ll   -  t  i  _   -  "- 

-.  _    '  .  .  . 


rrr-  re  ax  relation  I  •_'  1 


ago  absolute  dates  to  certain  pre-historie  events,  but 
optional,  and  not  generally  homolo- 
gated by  the  cult'  Did  peat- 
mi  -  Iwaya  i..  -at  the  same  rati.',  and  river-sEts 
an.  ■;  miniate  at  the  sam  .  the  age 
;  any  in.  mid  b  ■  tter  of  the  sim- 
plest calculation:  but  as  we  have  no  fixed  rate  of  in- 
crement, the ...  -  :..  nation  id  matti 
of  this  kind  can  only  be  received  as  a  sort  of  approxi- 
mation. Xo  doubt,  where  the  rate  of  |  jjress  has 
been  ascertained  not  for  one  year  but  tor  a  series  ot 
vears,  the  a;  nation  to  dates  must  become  very 
close,  and  such  calculations  -  ranch  entitled  to 
accept.  ■--.tatisties  or  other  well-ascertained 
are  3  ;  but,  in  the  mean  time,  geological  observa- 
tions have  been  neither  sufficientlv  long  nor  suffi- 
cientl  irately  made,  and  all  that  can  be  safely 
done  is  Me  by  a  relative  chronolog  ,  We  may 
not.  be  able  to  assign  to  any  event  a  date  in  years  and 
centuries,  but  we  can  say,  judging  from  the  known 
operations  of  nature,  whether  it  could  have  possiUy 
taken  place  within  the  lapse  of  six  or  of  sixteen  centu- 
ries, and  this,  however  little,  is  always  some  approach 
to  a  satisfactory  conclusion.  If  we  cannot  give  facts, 
we  can,  at  least,  correct  assumptions,  and  next  to  the 
value  of  positive  knowledge  is  the  power  of  exposing 
the  fallacy  of  that  which  is  merely  assumed. 

In  the  case  of  geology  this  power  must  rest  mainly 


122  man: 


on  the  nature  of  the  evidence  which  the  science  can 
adduce,  and  this  evidence,  though  inferential  in  its 
character,  is,  when  based  upon  well-observed  facts,  as 
certain  and  reliable  as  anything  connected  with  human 
testimony  can  be.  We  find,  for  example,  in  certain 
caverns,  the  bones  of  various  animals  imbedded  in  the 
calcareous  earth  that  has  accumulated  on  the  floors. 
On  breaking  up  this  stalagmitic  crust  we  discover  that 
many  of  the  bones  have  been  gnawed,  and  that  some, 
and  especially  the  hollow  ones,  have  been  split  up  into 
longitudinal  splinters.  We  ascribe  the  gnawing  to 
den-frequenting  carnivorous  animals  like  the  hyaena, 
and  the  splitting  to  human  instrumentality,  as  we 
know  of  no  other  creature  save  man  capable  of  so 
manipulating.  These  inferences  are  of  themselves 
sound  and  reliable  ;  but  they  amount  to  absolute  cer- 
tainty when  on  further  examination  we  discover  the 
hardened  and  peculiar  excrement  of  the  hyaena,  and 
the  stone  hatchet  of  the  rude  marrow-sucking  savage. 
Supposing  that  no  implements  had  been  found,  and 
that  doubts  existed  as  to  the  splitting  of  the  bones,  we 
find  on  still  further  research  ashes  and  fragments  of 
wood-charcoal  scattered  through  the  stalagmite,  and 
then  the  presence  of  man  in  these  caverns  becomes  at 
once  an  established  certainty.  No  creature  save  man 
lights  a  fire,  no  creature  save  man  ever  lighted  one ; 
and  the  testimoiry  of  these  wood-ashes  as  to  the  exist- 
ence of  a  cave-dwelling  race  is  as  conclusive  as  if  we 


HIS  GEOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.       123 


had  witnessed  their  grimy  countenances  lighted  up  by 
the  fires  of  which  these  fragments  were  the  latest 
embers.  Or  again,  suppose  we  are  excavating  a  canal 
along  some  level  plain,  and  pass  through  first  a  layer 
of  soil,  then  a  bed  of  peat,  next  a  layer  of  shelly 
marl,  and  lastly  through  a  stratum  of  clayey  silt,  the 
obvious  inference  is,  we  are  cutting  through  the 
sediments  of  some  ancient  lake :  the  silt,  the  shell- 
marl,  and  the  peat-earth  marking  its  successive  stages 
of  filling-up  and  obliteration.  Of  these  stages  we  have 
no  chronology  in  years,  but  were  Roman  remains  found 
imbedded  in  the  peat,  and  tree-canoes  in  the  silt  be- 
neath, thesewould  prove  that  some  two  thousand  years 
ago  the  place  was  in  the  condition  of  a  marsh,  and 
that  long  before — it  may  have  been  thousands  of  years 
before — it  was  the  site  of  a  lake  over  which  the  early 
inhabitants  of  the  country  paddled  their  rude  canoes. 
We  arrive  at  the  first  inference  from  our  knowledge  of 
the  time  our  country  was  invaded  by  the  Romans,  and 
at  the  second  from  our  equally  certain  knowledge  of 
the  slow  rate  at  which  lake-silts  accumulate  and  shell- 
marls  are  formed.  Such  is  the  nature  of  geological 
evidence,  and  when  the  facts  are  rightly  observed 
there  need  be  no  more  hesitation  in  accepting  it  than 
in  receiving  any  other  kind  of  testimony  the  earnest 
and  honest  can  offer. 

Understanding  then  the  nature  of  geological  evi- 
dence and  geological  chronology,  let  us  next  inquire 


124 


MAN 


what  light  has  been  thrown  upon  the  antiquity  of  man 
by  recent  researches  among  the  superficial  accumula- 
tions of  Western  Europe.  We  say  Western  Europe, 
for  as  yet  this  is  the  only  region  that  has  met  with  any- 
thing like  attention  from  geologists,  though  other 
regions  may,  and  in  all  likelihood  will,  contribute  a 
richer  harvest,  and  give  evidence  of  a  still  higher  an- 
tiquity. In  passing  from  the  historic  to  the  pre-his- 
toric  in  Western  Europe,  sepulchral  mounds,  sculp- 
tured monoliths,  and  other  kindred  monuments,  first 
demand  the  attention  of  the  antiquarian  and  geolo- 
gist. Many  of  these  are  clearly  of  vast  antiquity,  but 
people  who  could  sculpture  huge  monoliths  and  trans- 
port them  often  for  considerable  distances,  must  have 
made  some  progress  in  the  mechanical  arts,  and  must, 
in  the  ordinary  course  of  events,  have  been  preceded 
by  others  more  primitive  and  less  advanced.  The 
same  may  be  said  of  the  lake-dwellings  which  have 
recently  received  such  minute  and  painstaking  atten- 
tion from  the  archaeologists  of  Switzerland.  People 
who  were  capable  of  erecting  pile-works  and  platforms 
for  huts,  who  wove  cloth,  domesticated  animals,  and 
had  some  simple  forms  of  agriculture,  were  by  no 
means  in  the  earliest  stages  of  savage  life ;  and  though 
they  may  have  passed  through  the  successive  stages  of 
using  stone,  bronze,  and  iron  implements,  still,  the 
fact  of  their  settling  in  communities  and  erecting  per- 
manent dwellings  does  not  entitle  them  to  be  regarded 


HIS  GEOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.       125 


as  the  earliest  inhabitants  of  the  district.*  Man's 
beginnings  in  every  country  are  rude,  scanty  and  easi- 
ly effaced.  Few  in  number  as  compared  with  other 
animals,  wandering  hither  and  thither  as  the  chance 
of  food  impels,  sheltering  in  caves  where  these  occur, 
or  under  temporary  screens  of  leaves  and  branches 
where  caverns  do  not  exist,  savage  men  can  leave  but 
slender  traces  of  their  presence,  a  dropped  tool  or  the 
fragment  of  a  skeleton  being  for  the  most  part  the 
only  evidence  of  their  existence.  It  is  long  before  he 
becomes  acquainted  with  the  use  of  the  metals,  and 
even  when  he  has  learned  their  value,  the  softer  and 
more  easily  worked  come  first,  the  harder  and  most  dif- 


*  These  lake-dwellings,  known  as  PfaMhauten  or  "pile-dwell- 
ings "  in  Switzerland,  and  as  Orannogues  in  Ireland  and  Scotland, 
have  recently  received  much  attention  from  archaeologists.  In  the 
older  Pfahlbauten  of  Switzerland  the  implements  are  chiefly  of 
stone,  and  associated  with  the  cast  away  bones  of  the  deer,  boar 
and  wild  ox ;  in  those  of  intermediate  age  bronze  implements  pre- 
vail, associated  with  the  bones  of  the  domestic  ox,  pig,  and  goat ; 
while  in  tbe  more  recent,  iron  swords  and  spears  have  been  found, 
accompanied  by  carbonized  grains  of  wheat  and  barley,  and  with 
fragments  of  rude  textures  woven  of  flax  and  straw.  The  more  re- 
cent seem  to  have  been  anterior  to  the  great  Roman  invasion  of 
Northern  Europe ;  the  more  ancient  may  be  many  thousands  of 
years  older  than  that  event ;  but  on  the  whole  they  cannot  be  said 
to  afford  satisfactory  evidence  of  the  high  antiquity  which  has  been 
assigned  to  them  by  some  continental  inquirers.  For  a  compen- 
dious and  instructive  account  of  these  pre-historic  habitations  the 
reader  may  refer  to  Dr.  Keller's  Lake  Dwellings  of  Switzerland, 
translated  by  Mr.  Lee  in  186(>. 


126  man: 


ficult  of  reduction  from  their  ores  come  latest.  It  is  in 
this  way  that  archaeologists  speak  of  the  age  of  stone, 
bronze,  and  iron  ;  the  use  of  these  materials  marking 
the  comparative  stages  of  civilization,  and  forming  a 
rude  scale  of  time  whereby  to  judge  of  the  relative 
antiquity  of  a  people.  Of  course  this  scale  must  be 
applied  to  the  same  people  and  within  the  same  coun- 
try, for  one  race  may  be  working  iron  while  another 
is  still  employing  stone,  just  as  at  the  present  day  the 
South  Sea  Islander  polishes  his  stone  chisel  or  hatchet, 
while  the  inhabitants  of  Europe  are  fabricating  their 
implements  and  machinery  of  iron.  But  when  re- 
stricted to  the  same  people,  and  applied  judiciously, 
this  chronological  scale  of  stone,  bronze,  and  iron, 
gives  a  fair  approximation  to  relative  antiquity,  and 
as  such  may  be  safely  relied  upon. 

Applying  it  to  Western  Europe,  we  pass  from  the 
sculptured  monoliths,  sepulchral  barrows,  and  lake- 
dwellings,  which  give  evidence  of  the  use  of  iron  and 
bronze,  back  to  others  of  the  same  class  with  which 
stone  implements  alone  are  associated,  and  from 
these  still  backward  to  shell-mounds  (savage  feasting 
relics,)  cave-dwellings,  lake-silts,  and  river-drifts,  in 
which  all  the  implements  are  of  stone  and  often  of 
the  rudest  description.  The  monoliths,  barrows,  and 
lake-dwellings  may  carry  us  back  three,  four,  or  five 
thousand  years,  but  these  shell-mounds,  cave-earths, 
and  river-drifts  lie  tar  beyond  this — as  far,  or  perhaps 


HIS  GEOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.       127 


further,  than  the  former  are  removed  from  the  present 
day.  In  the  older  mounds,*  cave-earths,  and  drifts,  no 
finely-fashioned  implement  of  stone,  but  merely  the 
trace  of  metal  has  been  discovered,  no  polished  or 
roughest  and  rudest  tools  of  flint,  chert,  or  other  hard 
rock,  and  only  distinguishable  from  naturally-formed 
fragments  by  their  determinate  shapes,  and  the  chip- 
pings  for  that  purpose  to  which  they  have  been  sub- 
jected. Such  primitive  implements  have  been  found 
in  the  river-drifts,  lake-silts,  and  cave-earths,  of  Eng- 
land, France,  Belgium,  and  other  European  countries, 
under  conditions  that  imply  great  changes  in  the 
physical  arrangements  of  these  countries,  and,  as  ex- 
tensive geological   changes   require   long  periods  for 

*  These  shell-mounds— the  Kjokken-moddlng  or  Kitchen-mid- 
dens of  the  Danes — are  found  in  abundance  along  the  shores  of 
Western  Europe,  and  consist  chiefly  of  the  cast  away  shells  of  the 
oyster,  cockle,  periwinkle,  and  other  edible  kinds  of  shell-fish. 
They  greatly  resemble  heaps  of  shells  formed  by  Red  Indians 
along  the  eastern  shores  of  the  United  States  before  these  tribes 
were  extirpated.  The  "  Kitchen-middens  "  of  Europe  are  ascribed 
by  archaeologists  to  an  early  people  unacquainted  with  the  use  of 
metal,  as  all  the  implements  found  in  them  are  of  stone,  horn,  bone, 
or  wood,  with  fragments  of  rude  pottery  and  traces  of  wood  fires. 
All  the  bones  yet  found  are  those  of  wild  animals,  with  the  excep- 
tion perhaps  of  the  clog,  which  seems  to  have  been  domesticated. 
For  full  details  of  these  "shell-mounds,'*  as  also  of  the  prehistoric 
"lake-dwellings,"  "earth-mounds,"  and  "cave-dwellings,"  the 
reader  may  refer  to  Lubbock's  Prehistoric  Times,  as  yet  the  most 
compendious  English  work  devoted  to  these  archseologico-geologi- 
cal  subjects. 


128  man: 


their  accomplishment,  a  consequent  high  antiquity  for 
the  contemporaneous  tribes  who  fashioned  and  left 
them.  We  have  some  idea  of  the  time  when  iron 
and  bronze  were  respectively  introduced  into  Western 
Europe ;  we  occasionally  find  a  comminglement  of 
bronze  and  iron,  or  in  other  words,  the  age  of  bronze 
overlapping  the  age  of  iron ;  and  we  also  here  and 
there  discover  the  age  of  finely-formed  stone  tools 
overlapping  that  of  bronze ;  but  with  regard  to  these 
ruder  implements  we  have  no  standard  of  comparision, 
no  idea  of  their  epoch  save  what  can  be  gathered 
from  the  change  of  physical  conditions  since  their  en- 
tombment, or  the  character  of  the  organic  remains  im- 
bedded along  with  them. 

When  Ave  investigate  the  physical  conditions,  we 
find  lake-silts— clays,  marls,  peat-earths,  etc. — often  of 
great  thickness,  and  which,  judging  from  the  known 
rate  of  lacustrine  sediments,  most  have  taken  thous- 
ands of  years  to  accumulate ;  cave-earths  and  stalag- 
mitic  incrustations,  which,  considering  the  slow 
increase  of  calcareous  oozings,  must  also  have  taken 
long  ages  to  augment  to  several  yards  in  thickness ; 
and  river-drifts,  now  so  high  above  the  eroding 
stream,  and  in  valleys  so  altered  in  their  outlines,  that 
hundreds  of  centuries  must  have  elapsed  in  the  work 
of  erosion,  transporting,  assorting,  and  re-eroding,  of 
the  shingly  and  gravelly  debris.  There  is  no  getting 
over  these  tacts — no  calling  in  of  catacfysms,  no  shelt- 


HIS    GEOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  129 


ering  under  appeals  to  greater  activity  of  agency  in 
former  ages.  Cataclysms  may  assist  in  the  rapid 
alteration  of  river-courses,  but  they  cannot  produce 
stalagmite  in  caves,  lay  down  finely-laminated  sedi- 
ments in  lakes,  or  promote  the  growth  and  decay  of 
marl-forming  shell-life  in  lacustrine  waters.  Greater 
activity  of  physical  agency  may  produce  vaster  results 
in  shorter  periods,  but  no  activity  of  this  sort  can  be 
applied  to  the  usual  term  of  life — to  the  reproductive 
growth  and  decay  of  the  myriad  generations  of  plants 
and  animals  imbedded  in  these  formations.  But 
granting  the  physical  evidences  were  unsatisfactory, 
what  shall  be  said  to  the  remains  of  extinct  species 
of  ox,  of  reindeer,  musk-ox,  Irish  deer,  mammoth, 
rhinoceros,  and  other  extinct  animals,  occurring  in 
these  lake-silts,  river-drifts,  and  cave-earths,  and 
unmistakably  the  contemporaries,  and  in  many  in- 
stances the  victims,  of  the  rude  implement-makers  of 
Western  Europe  ?  All  that  we  know  of  animal  life 
tends  to  the  belief  that  new  species  require  ages  for 
their  development ;  and  these  extinct  oxen,  even 
though  occurring  in  the  very  uppermost  of  these  de- 
posits, necessarily  imply  a  vast  and  venerable  antiqui- 
ty. But  great  as  this  may  be,  the  occurrence  in  the 
south-west  of  Europe  of  the  reindeer  and  musk-ox, 
animals  now  peculiar  to  boreal  climates,  involves  a 
corresponding  climate  in  the  region  where  their  re- 
mains occur ;  and  as  climatic  changes  are  brought 
9 


130  max : 


about  by  the  slow  and  gradual  oscillations  of  sea  and 
land,  an  enormous  time  must  have  elapsed  since  the 
reindeer  and  musk-ox  herded  in  the  latitudes  of 
France,  and  a  primitive  race  of  men  feasted  on  their 
flesh,  clothed  themselves  with  their  skins,  and  whiled 
away  the  time  in  carving  their  rude  representations 
on  their  implements  and  utensils.*  Still  earlier  than 
these,  and  far  more  remote,  are  the  remains  of  the 
great  Irish  deer,  the  hairy  elephant  or  mammoth,  and 
the  woolly-haired  rhinoceros,  remains  of  which  lie  in 
juxtaposition  with  the  rude  flint  hatchets  and  spear- 
heads of  the  first-known  inhabitants  of  Europe.  The 
thick  hairy  covering  of  these  animals,  the  undigested' 
fragments  of  vegetable  foodjound  within  their  skele- 
tons, and  other  particulars  we  have  learned  of  them 
from  their  discovery  in  the  frozen  soils  of  Siberia, 
give  ample  evidence  of  their  adaptation  to  a  rigorous 
climate — so  rigorous,  that  at  the  time  they  roamed 
over  the  latitudes  of  France  and  England  glaciers 
may  have  come  down  to  the  sea-shores,  and  icebergs 
floated  on  the  waters.  Such  vicissitudes  in  geograph- 
ical conditions  involve  an  enormous  lapse  of  time,  and 
no  unprejudiced  mind  can*  review  these  facts  without 
coming  to  the  conclusion  that  man  has  been  an  inhab- 
itant of  Western  Europe' for  ages  antecedent  to  the 


*  Rude  representations  of  the  rcindeerjuid  mammoth  have  been 
found  on  the  bone-relics  of  the  caves  of  Southern  France,  and  are 
noticed  in  the  works  of  MM.  Lartet, :Le  Hon,  and  others. 


HIS    GEOLOGICAL    EELATIONS.  131 


date  of  the  ordinarily-accepted  chronology.  Indeed 
the  conviction  is  irresistible,  "  if,"  as  has  been  aptly 
remarked  by  Baron  Bunsen,*  "  the  space  of  time  dur- 
ing which  man  has  existed  on  the  face  of  our  mother 
earth  be  measured,  not  by  conventional  notions  aris- 
ing out  of  ignorance  and  sanctioned  by  prejudice,  but 
by  facts  which  any  one  is  capable  of  investigating  who 
does  not  shrink  from  researches  determinable  with 
logical  demonstration  and  mathematical  cogency." 

But  high  as  may  be  the  antiquity  of  man  in  Europe, 
it  cannot  be  set  down  as  the  limit  of  his  existence  in 
Asia  and  other  regions.  All  that  we  learn  from  his- 
tory, from  tradition,  or  from  ethnology — whatever  it 
may  be  worth — points  unmistakably  to  an  Oriental 
descent,  race  after  race,  for  the  inhabitants  of  Europe; 
and  thus  while  the  men  of  Western  Europe  were 
fashioning  flint  impliments  and  combating  with  the 
difficulties  of  their  situation,  earlier  races  may  have 
been  enjoying  the  amenities  of  a  comparatively  ad- 
vanced civilization  in  Southern  Asia.  "It  is  not 
under  the  hard  conditions  of  the  glacial  epoch  in 
Europe,"  says  the  late  Dr.  Hugh  Falconer,  a  cautious 
and  most  unprejudiced  reasoner,f  "  that  the  earliest 
relics  of  the  human  race  upon  the  globe  are  to  be 

*  Egypt's  Place  in  Universal  History,  vol.  iv. 

t  "  On  the  asserted  occurrence  of  Human  Bones  in  the  ancient 
fluviatile  deposits  of  the  Nile  and  Ganges."  Quarterly  Journal  of 
the  Geological  Society,  1865. 


132  man: 


sought.  Like  the  Esquimaux,  Tehukche,  and  Samoy- 
eds  on  the  shores  of  the  Icy  Sea  at  the  present  day, 
man  must  have  been  then  and  there  an  emigrant 
placed  under  circumstances  of  rigorous  and  uncertain 
existence,  unfavorable  to  the  struggle  of  life  and  to 
the  maintenance  and  spread  of  the  species.  It  is 
rather  in  the  great  alluvial  valleys  of  tropical  and  sub- 
tropical rivers,  like  the  Ganges,  the  Irawaddy,  and  the 
Nile,  where  we  may  expect  to  detect  the  vestiges  of 
his  earliest  abode.  It  is  there  where  the  necessaries 
of  life  are  produced  by  nature  in  the  greatest  variety 
and  profusion,  and  obtained  with  the  smallest  effort — 
there  where  climate  exacts  the  least  protection  against 
the  vicissitudes  of  the  weather  ;  and  there  where  the 
lower  animals  which  approach  him  nearest  now 
exist,  and  where  fossil  remains  turn  up  in  greatest 
variety  and  abundance.  The  earliest  date  to  which 
man  has  yet  been  traced  back  in  Europe  is  probably 
but  as  yesterday  in  comparison  with  the  epoch  at 
which  he  made  his  appearance  in  more  favored  re- 
gions. 

Before,  therefore,  we  can  indicate  the  term  of  man's 
existence  on  this  globe,  geology  must  carry  her  re- 
searches to  other  regions,  must  trace  his  rude  begin- 
nings in  Asia  and  Africa,  and  discover,  if  possible,  the 
nature  of  the  contemporaneous  fauna.  xVs  yet  little 
or  nothing  has  been  done  in  this  direction,  but  the 
occurrence   of  implements  of  quartzite  in    Southern 


HIS  GEOLOGICAL  RELATION'S.       133 


India,*  similar  to  the  flint-tools  of  Western  Europe, 
demonstrate  the  same  simple  beginnings,  and  imply  a 
long  upward  ascent  from  workers  in  stone  to  workers 
in  metal,  and  this,  he  it  observed,  at  a  period  ages 
before  man  had  found  his  way  westward  to  the  caves 
and  river-valleys  of  France  and  Belgium.  If,  them 
history  and  architectural  monuments  in  Egypt,  As- 
syria, and  Chaldsea,  carry  us  back  something  like  four 
or  five  thousand  years,  what  shall  be  said  of  the  time 
that  must  have  elapsed  between  the  skilled  and  pow- 
erful peoples  who  erected  them  and  the  rude  fashion- 
ers of  these  quartzite  implements  ?  Not  only  the 
rising  from  barbarism  to  civilization,  but  the  evolution 
of  new  nationalities,  new  religions,  new  styles  of 
architecture,  and  all,  in  fine,  that  constitutes  new 
phases  of  humanity,  must  have  taken  place  ;  and  these 
things,  judging  from  the  ordinary  rate  of  progress, 
must  have  required  an  enormous  amount  of  time  for 
their  accomplishment. 

But  admitting  that  Europe  was  peopled  b}7  migra- 
tions from  the  East,  and  that  the  Hint-formers  of 
Europe  were  preceded  by  the  quartzite-workers  of 
Asia,  there  is  still  no  evidence  that  the  quartzite-men 
of  India  were  the  original  inhabitants  of  the  Asiatic 
continent.     We  must  carry  the  argument  of  ascensive 

*  Discovered  in  1865,  in  the  lateritic  formation  of  Madras,  by 
Messrs.  Foote  and  King  of  the  Indian  Geological  Survey.  See 
Quarterly  Journal  of  Geology. 


134  3ian: 


development  still  further,  and  believe  that  as  the  men 
of  Europe  were  descended  from  those  of  Asia,  so  the 
Indo-European  variety  of  our  race  was  preceded  by 
the  inferior  varieties — Mongolian  or  Negritian — in  the 
order  of  their  physical  and  intellectual  advancement. 
So  far  as  any  argument  drawn  from  language  can 
be  of  any  avail,  it  points  also  in  this  direction — the 
Turanian  having  preceded  the  Semitic  and  Arian,  or 
more  broadly  and  generally,  the  monosyllabic  being 
older  than  the  agglutinate,  and  the  agglutinate  than 
the  amalgamate.  ' '  As  far  as  the  formal  part  of  lan- 
guage is  concerned,"  says  Professor  Max  Midler,* 
"we  cannot  resist  the  conclusion  that  what  is  now 
inflectional  was  formerly  agglutinative,  and  what  is 
now  agglutinative  was  at  first  radical.  The  great 
stream  of  language  rolled  on  in  numberless  dialects, 
and  changed  its  grammatical  coloring  as  it  passed 
from  time  to  time  through  new  deposits  of  thought. 
The  different  channels  which  left  the  main  current 
and  became  stationary  and  stagnant,  or,  if  you  like, 
literary  and  traditional,  retained  for  ever  that  color- 
ing which  the  main  current  displayed  at  the  stage  of 
their  separation.  If  we  call  the  radical  stage  ivhite, 
the  ao-o-lutinative  red,  and  the  inflectional  blue,  then 
we  may  well  understand  why  the  white  channels 
should  show  hardly  a  drop  of  red  or  blue,  or  why  the 


*  Lectures  on  the  Science  of  Language,  p.  318.   1861. 


HIS  GEOLOGICAL  RELATIONS.       135 


red  channels  should  hardly  betray  a  shadow  of  blue, 
and  we  shall  be  prepared  to  find  what  we  do  find — 
namely,  white  tints  in  the  red,  and  white  and  red 
tints  in  the  blue  channels  of  speech."  Indeed,  no 
other  line  of  argument  save  the  ascensive  will  avail, 
and  to  blink  this  would  be  to  throw  the  whole  ques- 
tion of  the  unity  and  progression  of  the  human  race 
into  utter  and  inextricable  confusion.  High,  there- 
fore, as  may  be  the  geological  antiquity  of  man  in 
Western  Europe  and  Southern  Asia,  we  must  seek 
for  still  earlier  traces  in  other  portions  of  Asia  as  well 
as  in  Africa ;  and  even  were  such  traces  discovered, 
we  are  not  to  believe  that  the  lowest  existing  variety 
may  not  have  been  preceded  in  later-tertiary  times  by 
others  still  more  lowly  both  in  physical  and  mental 
endowments. 

We  are  aware  that  it  is  argued  by  some,  apparently 
little  acquainted  with  the  physical  relations  of  life, 
that  it  is  only  under  the  existing  conditions  of  the 
globe  that  mankind  could  have  subsisted,  and  that  all 
the  preceding  geological  epochs  were  spent,  as  it 
were,  in  the  "preparation  of  the  earth  for  the  recep- 
tion of  the  human  race."  It  is  true  that  all  we  know 
of  the  present,  as  well  as  all  that  geology  has  told  us 
of  the  past,  leads  to  the  belief  that  life  is  adapted  to 
the  conditions  by  which  it  is  surrounded,  and  further, 
that  in  the  ascent  of  plant-life  and  animal-life  which 
palaeontology  has   revealed,   there   is  also   a   mutual 


136  man: 


co-adaptation  of  living  forms  ;  but  seeing  the  vast 
range  of  conditions — polar,  temperate,  and  tropical — 
under  which,  man  now  exists,  and  the  extreme  variety 
of  substances  on  which  he  can  subsist,  and  that  often 
exclusively,  there  is  no  reason  why  rude  races  (like 
the  Esquimaux)  may  not  have  lived  on  seals  and  fishes 
during  the  later  stages  of  the  glacial  period,  or  even 
(like  the  South  Sea  Islanders)  on  the  palm  fruits  of 
the  tertiary  epoch.  This  argument  of  the  "  prepara- 
tion of  the  earth  for  man,"  so  often  appealed  to  by 
sciolists  in  support  of  the  recentness  of  the  human 
race,  must  be  extended  to  much  wider  limits  than  is 
generally  supposed  ;  and  even  were  we  to  restrict  it  to 
post-tertiary  times,  these  times  have  witnessed  so 
many  changes  that  thousands  of  centuries  must  have 
already  passed  in  their  fulfilment. 

Honestly  and  unreservedly,  the  whole  spirit  and  ten- 
dency of  the  geological  argument  is  in  favor  of  a  high 
antiquity  to  the  human  race,  inexpressible  in  years 
and  centuries,  and  oniy  to  be  estimated  relatively  to 
other  physical  occurrences.  It  is  of  no  avail  to  appeal 
to  the  unequal  operation  of  physical  forces  in  time 
past,  to  cataclysms,  and  other  similar  uncertainties. 
The  slow  formation  of  deposits  in  which  relics  of  hu- 
man art  have  been  found,  the  character  of  the  contem- 
poraneous animals,  the  changes  in  climate  which  these 
animal  remains  imply,  and  the  altered  distributions  of 
sea  and  land  which  must  have  given  rise  to  these  cli- 


HIS    GEOLOGICAL    RELATIONS.  137 


matic  changes,  all  point  unmistakably  to  an  inconceiv- 
able lapse  of  time.  To  shut  our  ej-es  against  these 
facts,  or  to  attempt  to  explain  them  away  in  favor  of 
any  preconceived  opinions  as  to  the  antiquity  of  man, 
would  be  to  discard  the  clearest  deductions  of  reason, 
and  wilfully  and  untruthfully  to  resist  conviction. 

Our  sixth  proposition,  therefore,  is  that  there  is 
ample  geological  evidence  of  man's  having  been  an 
inhabitant  of  Western  Europe  for  a  period  vastly  ex- 
ceeding that  of  the  ordinarily-accepted  chronology.  As 
all  historical,  traditional,  and  ethnological  testimony 
points  to  the  descent  of  the  men  of  Europe  from  more 
Oriental  stocks,  so  the  fair  presumption  is,  that  the 
human  race  existed  in  Asia  and  in  Northern  Africa  for 
ages  anterior  to  its  appearance  in  the  caves  and  river- 
valleys  of  France  and  Belgium.  It  is  true  we  have  as 
yet  no  evidence  of  the  ethnology  of  the  cavern-dwellers 
and  flint-workers  of  "Western  Europe :  if  they  were  of 
Mongolian  origin  (as  some  are  disposed  to  think)  it 
would  not  lessen  their  antiquity,  and  if  they  were  of 
Caucasian  descent  it  would  vastly  increase  it,  seeing  that 
this  brings  into  play  the  argument  of  ascensive  develop- 
ment, of  which  the  lower  must  precede  the  higher — 
the  Mongol  the  Caucasian,  and  the  Negro  the  Mongol — 
thus  carrying  back  the  antiquity  of  mankind  immeasur- 
able ages  before  his  appearance  either  on  the  platform 
of  South-western  Asia  or  on  that  of  Southern  Europe. 


GENETIC  EELATIOXS. 

Order  and  Succession  of  Life  in  Time — Hypothesis  of  Develop- 
mental or  Derivative  Descent — its  Proofs  and  Probabilities — 
as  Applicable  to  the  Human  Pace — not  necessarily  Degrad- 
ing— Manner  in  which  it  should  be  Received — Our  Seventh 
Proposition. 

High  as  we  may  carry  the  antiquity  of  man,  far 
back  as  we  may  trace  his  lowly  beginnings,  there  still 
lies  beyond  this  the  question  of  his  origin,  the  inquiry 
how,  or  by  what  process,  he  came  into  being  ?  If  it 
be  difficult  to  arrive  at  some  intelligible  notion  of  his 
antiquity,  much  more  must  it  be  to  penetrate  to  his 
origin.  The  glimmer  which  science  is  yet  enabled  to 
throw  on  this  subject  may  be  dim  and  uncertain,  still, 
if  it  can  lead  to  some  indication,  it  is  something  gained 
— something  for  the  reason  to  follow — till,  under  the 
broader  light  of  increasing  knowledge,  it  arrive  at  a 
satisfactory  conclusion.  It  is  in  vain  to  discourage 
the  inquiry  or  point  to  the  hopelessness  of  its  results. 
Man,  in  every  stage  of  his  existence — savage  or  civil- 
ized— has  turned  to  the  question,  and,  according  to  the 
amount  of  his  knowledge,  has  invented  theories  and 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  139 


offered  opinions.  Whence  are  we  ?  is  a  question  that 
has  occurred  alike  to  the  untutored  savage  and  the 
learned  philosopher.  The  African  Negro  believes 
that  his  race  must  have  had  a  first  mother ;  the  Red 
Indians  that  they  came  from  the  "rising  sun,"  or  east, 
meaning  they  were  the  adopted  children  of  some  di- 
vine personage  who  emanated  from  thence.  The 
Thibetians  believe  that  mankind  descended  from  the 
ape ;  and  in  Borneo  the  myth  is  that  man  was  created 
from  the  dust  of  the  earth,  and  that  woman  was  form- 
ed from  the  great  toe  of  the  man.  The  Pelasgians 
and  Greeks  believed  themselves  to  have  sprung  from 
the  ground,  a  belief  participated  in  by  other  Eastern 
nations,  and  largely  underlying  the  whole  of  the  ear- 
lier and  Oriental  cosmogonies.  In  the  Phoenician  cos- 
mogony, chaos  is  transformed  into  order  or  cosmos  by 
thunder  and  lightning,  and  man  is  awakened  from  the 
earth  by  the  rattle  of  the  primal  thunders ;  in  the 
Chaldasan,  Belus  cuts  off  his  own  head,  but  the  gods 
mingle  the  blood  which  flows  with  the  dust  of  the 
earth,  and  out  of  this  red  earth  man  is  formed,  and 
from  this  origin  is  rational  and  participates  in  the 
divine  reason.  According  to  the  second  version  of 
the  Hebrew  Genesis,  Adam,  the  man,  (by  some  com- 
mentators said  to  signify  "-red  earth,")  is  formed  out 
of  the  dust  of  the  ground,  and  Eve,  the  woman,  is 
fashioned  from  a  rib  taken  out  of  the  side  of  Adam  ; 
while  according  to  the  first  version  man  is  simply  said 


140  MAIN1" 


to  have  been  created  on  the  sixth  day,  male  and  fe- 
male,  and  in  the  image  of  his  Maker.  But  however 
curious  the  fable,  or  mysterious  the  myth,  none  of  them 
is  of  the  least  avail  to  science,  and  reason  is  driven,  in 
the  long  run,  either  to  abide  by  the  belief  in  a  direct 
creative  act  or  to  seek  for  the  solution  of  the  problem 
in  the  theory  of  derivative  descent.  To  this  it  comes 
at  last,  and  on  this  ground,  and  this  alone,  must  the 
question  of  man's  origin  be  combated. 

If  we  abide  by  the  simple,  generalized  statement, 
that  in  the  beginning  God  created  man,  and  believe 
that  this  was  a  miraculous  act  of  the  Creator,  then  it 
is  placed  at  once  beyond  human  research  and  scientific 
investigation.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  we  regard  it 
merely  as  atatement  of  God's  working  in  creation,  and 
of  God's  working  by  secondary  processes,  then  science 
may  humbly  and  devotly  approach  the  problem.  This 
is  all,  in  indicating  the  origin  of  man,  that  science 
proposes  to  do ;  and  seeing  that  the  whole  animal 
scheme  is  bound  together  by  community  of  plan,  that 
physiology  can  trace  variations  in  existing  life,  that 
palaeontology  has  demonstrated  variation  in  extinct 
life,  and  that  ascent  from  lower  to  higher  forms  in 
time  has  been  brought  about  by  the  principle  of  adap- 
tive modification  of  structural  parts  conformable  to  a 
preordained  plan,  it  is  but  rational  and  in  accordance 
with  scientific  methods,  that  the  same  principles  of 
research  be  applied  to  the  genesis  of  man  as  to  the 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  141 


genesis  of  other  animals.  We  may  believe  in  a  direct 
act  of  creation,  but  we  cannot  make  it  a  subject,  of  re- 
search ;  faith  may  accept,  but  reason  cannot  grasp  it. 
On  the  other  hand,  a  process  of  derivation  by  descent  is 
a  thing  we  can  trace  as  of  a  kind  with  other  processes  ; 
and  though  unable  to  explain,  we  can  follow  it  as  an 
indication  at  least  of  the  method  which  nature  has 
adopted  in  conformity  with  her  ordinary  and  normal 
course  of  procedure.  We  can  admit  possibilities,  but 
must  reason  from  probabilities,  and  the  probable  can 
only  be  judged  of  from  what  is  already  known.  Than 
this  there  is  clearly  no  other  course  for  philosophy. 
Everywhere  in  nature  it  sees  nothing  save  processes, 
means  and  results,  causes  and  effects,  and  it  cannot 
conceive,  even  if  it  wished,  of  amTthing  being  brought 
about  unless  through  the  instrumentality  of  means  and 
processes.  "The  whole  analogy  of  natural  opera- 
tions," says  Professor  Huxley,*  "  furnishes  so  complete 
and  crushing  an  argument  against  the  intervention  of 
any  but  what  are  termed  secondary  causes  in  the  pro- 
duction of  all  the  phenomena  of  the  universe,  that  in 
view  of  the  intimate  relations  between  Man  and  the 
rest  of  the  living  world,  and  between  the  forces  exert- 
ed by  the  latter  and  all  other  forces,  I  can  see  no  ex- 
cuse for  doubting  that  all  are  co-ordinated  terms  of 
Nature's  great  progression,  from  the  formless  to  the 

*  Evidence  as  to  Man's  Place  in  Nature,  p.  108.     1S63. 


142  man  : 


formed,  from  the  inorganic  to  the  organic,  from  blind 
force  to  conscious  intellect  and  will." 

On  this  point  olden  belief  and  modern  philosophy 
have  hitherto  been  at  variance.  Let  us  note  for  a 
moment  some  results  of  the  contest.  The  primitive 
notion  that  this  earth  was  the  centre  of  the  universe, 
and  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars,  formed  merely  to  be  its 
subservients,  has  long  since,  though  not  without  a 
struggle,  given  way  to  more  rational  convictions. 
The  old  belief  that  the  world  was  formed  some  six  or 
seven  thousand  years  ago  has  been  dispelled  by  the 
discovery  of  numerous  rock-formations,  and  innumer- 
able successions  of  plants  and  animals  entombed 
within  them  in  the  crust  of  the  earth.  The  connate 
belief  that  the  land  and  waters  separated  at  the  begin- 
ning were  the  same  as  the  existing  continents  and 
seas,  has  also  been  set  aside  by  the  clearest  evidence 
that  land  and  water  have  repeatedly  changed  places, 
and  under  existing  forces  are  still  gradually  passing 
into  other  forms  and  arrano-ements.  The  kindred 
notion  that  existing  plants  and  animals  were  the  same 
as  those  created  in  the  beginning,  has,  in  like  manner, 
been  superseded  by  the  knowledge  that  thousands  of 
species  and  genera,  and  even  whole  families  and 
orders,  have  disappeared  and  been  succeeded  by  other 
and  higher  genera  and  species.  So  also  the  belief 
that  the  creation  of  all  these — planets,  plants,  and 
animals  as  we  now  behold  them — was  the  summary 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  143 


work  of  a  few  days,  has  been  supplanted  by  the 
knowledge  that  our  earth  involves  in  the  numerous 
successions  of  her  physical  and  vital  aspects,  as  re- 
vealed by  geology,  incalculable  periods  for  their  fulfil- 
ment. And  as  this  kind  of  knowledge  has  extended, 
men  of  science  have  gradually  begun  to  inquire  into 
the  nature  of  the  processes  by  which  these  changes 
have  been  effected,  and  the  laws  by  which  these  pro- 
cesses are  sustained  and  controlled.  In  this  way  the 
investigation  has  proceeded  from  the  inorganic  to  the 
organic  world,  from  the  rock-formations  to  the  plants 
and  animals  imbedded  within  them,  and  from  the  suc- 
cession of  plants  and  animals  to  the  methods  by  which 
these  successions  are  apparently  connected.  Nothing 
could  be  more  natural,  and  consequently  more  phil- 
osophical, than  this  mode  of  procedure.  And  as  a 
gradual  ascent  in  time  from  lower  to  higher  forms  of 
life  has  been  clearly  established,  and  as  science  has  no 
evidence  of  other  than  the  operation  of  secondary 
forces  in  nature,  so  it  seeks  to  ascribe  this  ascent  to 
this  kind  of  causation.  In  other  words,  it  tries  to 
connect  by  some  process  of  derivative  descent  the 
higher  with  the  lower,  and  the  highest  with  that 
which  stands  next  beneath  it. 

In  working  out  this  inquiry  we  must,  as  in  other 
cases,  believe  in  the  fixity  of  nature's  methods,  and 
apply  our  knowledge  of  the  present  to  the  explanation 
of  the  past.     We  know  that  life  is  influenced  by  the 


144  u an: 


physical  conditions  by  which  it  is  surrounded ;  we 
also  know  that  under  these  influences  some  species 
succumb,  while  others,  more  elastic  in  their  nature, 
become  slightly  modified,  and  endure ;  and  we  further 
know  that  such  variations  are  perpetuated  by  heredit- 
ary transmission.  If,  then,  the  principle  of  variation 
v  or  adaptive  modification  be  admitted — no  matter  how 
infinitesimal  the  variations  may  be  within  a  given 
time — it  must,  in  the  long  run,  be  capable  of  produc- 
ing the  most  extensive  results,  and  what  are  now 
regarded  as  varieties  may  pass  into  species,  and 
species  in  process  of  time  assume  the  rank  of  generic 
distinctions.  We  are  aware  it  is  argued  on  the  other 
side  that,  though  variation  is  incessantly  taking  place, 
yet  there  is  a  limit  to  its  extent,  and  that  in  time  the 
varieties  either  die  out  or  return  to  the  typical  species. 
As  perturbations  in  the  planetary  system  have  a  limit, 
so  it  is  contended  variation  in  life-forms  has  its  limit, 
and  does  not  and  cannot  go  on  indefinitely.  Plausi- 
ble as  this  may  seem,  it  is,  however,  the  merest  as- 
sumption. Such  variations  as  have  been  witnessed  or 
made  the  subject  of  special  research  have  taken  place 
within  limited  periods,  and  under  artificial  aids  and 
sameness  of  conditions ;  whereas  in  nature  variation 
takes  place  concomitantly  with  change  in  conditions, 
and  is  thus  subjected  inimitably  to  those  forces  which 
continue  to  favour  its  divergence.  This  knowledge 
of  variation  in  existing  nature,  and  the  discovery  by 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  145 


palaeontology  that  the  lower  forms  of  life  are  gradually 
succeeded  by  the  higher — the  invertebrate  by  the 
vertebrate,  the  fish  by  the  reptile,  the  reptile  by  the 
bird,  and  the  bird  by  the  mammal — his  given  rise  to 
what  is  generally  known  as  the  Development  Hypoth- 
esis, which  seeks  to  connect  the  whole  scheme  of  life 
by  a  process  of  derivative  descent,  just  as  it  is  evi- 
dently bound  together  by  one  great  structural  concep- 
tion.* In  working  out  this  view,  science  has,  of 
course,  many  difficulties  to  contend  with.  In  the  first 
place,  the  subject  of  variation  in  existing  life-forms 
has  not  yet  received  sufficiently  exact  attention,  nor 
has  observation  been  extended  over  an  adequate 
amount  of  time ;  and,  in  the  second  place,  palaeonto- 
logy is  so  recent,  and  has  so  wide  a  field  before  it, 
that  little  more  than  the  outline  of  a  plan  of  ascent 
from  lower  to  higher  in  time  has  been  sketched  by  its 
cultivators.      Under   these    circumstances  some  may 

*  The  Development  Hypothesis,  as  entertained  by  its  leading 
supporters,  may  be  briefly  enunciated  as  follows  :  1.  That  all  the  / 
germs  of  future  plants,  organical  bodies  of  all  kinds,  and  the 
reproducible  parts  of  them,  were  really  contained  in  the  first  germ; 
2.  That  species  were  not  produced  by  independent  creation,  but 
that,  under  operation  of  a  general  law,  the  germs  of  organisms 
produced  new  forms  different  from  themselves  when  particular 
circumstances  called  the  law  into  action;  and  3.  That  these  evok- 
ing circumstances  have  occurred  indefinite  order,  and  in  conform- 
ity with  a  great  preordained  plan,  whereby  the  scheme  of  life  has 
ever  been  kept  in  harmony  with  the  ordinal  rank  which  now  pre- 
vails among  plants  and  animals. 

10 


146  man: 


ascribe  too  much  to  the  influence  of  external  condi- 
tions ;  some  to  the  principle  of  natural  selection,  by 
which  the  weaker  and  less  elastic  succumb  to  chansre 
of  condition,  while  the  stronger  and  more  elastic  en- 
dure; others  to  the  use  and  disuse  of  organs  by  which 
some  members  are  largely  developed,  and  others  grad- 
ually disappear;  and  others  again,  while  admitting  all 
these,  may  believe  that  there  are  other  factors  in  the 
law  of  development,  by  which  the  whole  scheme  of 
life  is  kept  in  the  midst  of  incessant  variation,  even  in 
consonance  with  a  great  pre-ordained  plan.  But  how- 
ever the  advocates  of  development  may  differ  on  par- 
ticulars, or  how  much  they  may  admit  the  imperfec- 
tions of  the  theory,  they  seek  to  establish  it  as  the  only 
comprehensible  process  by  which  the  Creator  has 
chosen  to  people  this  earth,  at  the  several  stages  of  its 
existence,  with  newer,  higher,  and  ever-varying  life- 
forms.  This  is  the  whole  principle  and  purport  of  the 
Development  Hypothesis,  and  how  much  it  may  be 
misrepresented  by  its  opponents,  it  is  simply  a  legiti- 
mate effort  of  science  to  unravel  the  relations  of  life, 
and  connect  them,  as  it  does  other  phenomena,  with 
the  operating  forces  of  the  universe. 

And  bo  it  observed  that  however  closely  science 
may  connect,  these  relations  in  the  way  of  cause  and 
effect,  the  forces  are  merely  the  instruments  through 
which  the  Creator  has  chosen  to  operate,  and  are  of 
themselves  nothing  save  upheld  and  directed   by  Al- 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  147 


mighty  power.  The  outcry  of  materialism,  atheism, 
and  the  like,  by  which  the  Development  Hypothesis 
has  sometimes  been  assailed,  is  utterly  pitiable,  and  all 
the  more  that  it  is  most  frequently  raised  by  those  who 
from  their  professional  calling  ought  to  know  best  that 
the  cause  of  truth  can  never  be  advanced  by  misrepre- 
sentation.* In  seeking  to  apply  the  hypothesis  to  the 
genesis  of  man  science  is  merely  following  out  those 
biological  relations  which  unmistakably  connect,  him 
with  the  rest  of  the  animal  kingdom.  If  it  be  applica- 
ble to  one  form  of  life,  it  must  be  applicable  to  all; 
and  seeing  that  man  is  clearly  constructed  after  the 
same  general  plan  as  the  species  next  beneath  him,  it 
would  be  erring  against  all  philosophical  principles  to 
shrink  from  extending  to  him  the  same  methods  of 
biological  research..     If  geology,  physiology,  and  anat- 

*  As  a  specimen  of  this  senseless  outcry  we  may  quote  the  fol- 
lowing from  the  newspaper  report  of  lectures  delivered  last  winter 
by  an  Edinburgh  Free  Church  Professor:  "After  referring  to  the 
change  which  had  taken  place  of  late  in  the  development  theory, 
the  lecturer  said  he  should  not  shrink  from  calling  it  by  its  ri»ht 
name,  and  asked  why  they  should  be  charged  with  a  want  of 
charity,  and  with  being  the  victims  of  theological  bias,  in  saying 
that  it  was  downright,  dark,  dreary  atheism.  Human  ingenuity 
had  never  been  able  to  adduce  one  fact  in  support  of  this  wretched 
theory.  It  was  trifling  with  human  intelligence  to  propose  it.  It 
was  an  outrage  on  common  sense  to  ask  us  to  ponder  it."  Such 
are  the  reported  terms  in  which  he  gave  vent  to  his  outraged  rea- 
son ;  and  yet.  "trifling"  and  "wretched''  and  "  outrageous  "  as  he 
thought  the  theory  to  be,  he  devoted  six  long  lectures— shall  we 
Bay  of  downright,  dark,  dreary  unreason? — against  it. 


148  man: 


omy  are  every  clay  founding  their  conclusions  on  the 
belief  in  the  community  of  life,  why  should  biology  be 
prevented   from  endeavoring  to  follow  it  to  its  ulti- 
mate   creational    connections?     It    is    true  that  the 
hypothesis  of  derivative  descent  is  beset  with  many 
difficulties.     Admitting  the  influence  of  external  con- 
ditions, the  principle  of  adaptive  modification,  natural 
selection,  the  use  and  disuse  of  organs,  the  power  of 
parental  impulse  on  embryonic  development,  and  the 
like,  to  their  fullest  extent,    the  variations  that  take 
place  among  living  forms  are  so  slow  that  we  cannot 
point  to  any  case  of  undoubted  specific  organization, 
and  on  the  other  hand,  the  gaps  in  the  geological  re- 
cord are  yet  so  many  that  we  cannot  trace  in  unbroken 
ascent  the  evolution  from  species  to  species,   or  from 
family  to  family.     We  see  the  principle  of  variation 
at  work  in  existing  nature ;   we  can  trace  the  broad 
outline  of  an  ascent  from  lower  to  higher  in  the  past — 
and  this  ascent  in  time  in  wonderful  harmony  with  the 
ordinal  rank  that  prevails  among  living  forms ;  and  as 
we  know  the  intimate  dependence  of  life  on  physical 
conditions,    so  we   ascribe  its   variations  and   newer 
aspects  mainly  to    the  influence  of    external   forces. 
Nay  more,  we  see  the  development  of  the  whole  vital 
/   plan,  so  wonderfully  analogous  to  the  development  of 
the  individual,  that  we  cannot  refuse  to  associate  with 
the  evolution  of  the  one  the  conditions  which  we  know 
are  indispensable  to  the  growth  of  the  other.     This, 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  149 


however,  is  all,  and  as  science  has  and  can  have  no 
other  object  than  the  establishment  of  truth,  it  is  as 
frank  in  admitting  its  defects  as  it  is  firm  in  maintain- 
ing its  demonstrations.  In  its  attacks  on  the  citadel 
of  the  unknown  it  may  recoil  baffled  and  toil-worn ; 
but  "the  failures  of  the  past  only  prepare  for  the 
triumphs  of  the  future." 

In  the  mean  time,  then,  however  zealous  some  may 
be  in  their  advocacy  of  the  development  theory,  it 
must  be  regarded  more  in  the  light  of  an  inference 
than  received  as  a  scientific  demonstration.  Geology 
has  not  yet  discovered  the  connecting  links,  as  it  were, 
between  man  and  the  lower  animals — no  form  or  forms 
that  can  be  said  to  stand  intermediate  between  the 
lower  grades  of  humanity  and  the  highest  known 
forms  of  quadrumana.  It  may  be  argued,  as  is  some- 
times done,  that  the  difference  between  the  lowest 
men  and  the  highest  quadrumana  is  not  so  wide  as 
that  between  the  highest  civilized  man  and  the  lowest 
savage.  Still,  narrow  as  the  gulf  may  be,  science  has 
yet  no  indication  of  any  intermediate  form  to  bridge 
it  over — no  trace  of  a  higher  quadrumane,  none  of  a 
lower  man  than  stone-fashioning,  cave-dwelling  savages. 
It  is  true  that  the  areas  of  geological  research  have  as 
yet  been  extremely  limited  and  partial,  and  scarcely, 
if  at  all,  in  the  latitudes  assigned  to  the  anthropoid 
quadrumana.  It  is  also  true  that,  so  far  as  palaeon- 
tology has  yet  given  testimoiry,  the  asceusive  develop- 


150  man: 


rnent  of  the  higher  animals  is  more  rapid  than  that  of 
the  lower,  or  in  other  words,  that  they  pass  through 
fewer  stages  into  new  species;  and  in  this  case  the 
intermediate  stages  of  man's  ascent  arc  scarcely  to  be 
expected,  and  even  these  only  within  those  regions 
which  are  now,  or  have  been  since  the  tertiary  epoch, 
the  head-quarters  of  the  higher  quadrumana.  And 
further,  it  may  also  be  true,  as  some  contend,  "that 
nature  can  produce  a  new  type  without  our  being  able 
to  see  the  marks  of  transition,  and  that  she  can  alter  a 
whole  race  simultaneously  without  its  passing  through 
the  phase  of  development  from  an  individual  in  whom 
the  entire  change  was  first  produced."*  But  even 
allowing  for  these  facts,  and  they  are  all  of  high  biolo- 
gical   significance,    it  were  unwise  in   science  not  to 

too  7 

admit  the  difficulties  that  beset  the  problem,  and  rash 
to  insist  on  more  than  the  general  inference  that,  as 
man  belongs  to,  and  is  inseparably  associated  with  the 
great  scheme  of  life,  so  he  must  have  been  subject,  and 
continue  to  be  subject,  to  any  law  of  development 
that  may  be  found  affecting  the  other  members. 
Where  the  advocates  of  development,  in  the  present 
incompleted  state  of  their  argument,  assume  a  posi- 
tion much  more  definite,  they  only  prejudice  their 
cause :  and  where  their  opponents  refuse  to  concede 


*  Geographical  Distribution  of  Mammals.     By  Andrew  Mur- 
ray. 18UG. 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  151 


this  much,  it  were  simply  waste  of  time  to  attempt  to 
convince  them. 

Admitting,  however,  that  the  higher  animals  pass 
through  fewer  stages  of  development ;  admitting  that 
large  areas  of  Africa  and  Asia,  where  the  intermediate 
forms  are  most  likely  to  occur,  are  yet  geologically 
unexplored ;  and  even  admitting  man's  structural 
modification  from  the  species  that  stand  next  beneath 
him,  there  still  remains  the  fact  that  something  new 
has  been  superadded — the  organization  fitted  for 
higher  functional  performance,  the  intellect  capable  of 
improvement  and  progress.  On  no  theory  of  mere 
physical  transmission  or  heredity  can  these  be  acount- 
ed  for.  The  predecessor  does  not  possess  them,  and 
could  not  bequeath  them  ;  the  law  is  a  mere  method, 
and  cannot  of  itself  originate  anything  new;  and  they  > 
can  only  be  resolved,  like  all  the  other  stages  in  a  plan 
of  ascensivo  development,  into  new  and  special  en- 
dowments. It  is  of  little  avail  to  contend,  as  some 
psychologists  do,  that  the  lower  animals  are  gifted 
with  intelligence  as  well  as  the  highest,  and  that  the 
higher  intellect  of  man  is  but  a  necessary  co-relation 
■of  his  structural  adaptations.  The  co-relation  between 
mind  and  matter  no  one  denies  ;  but  a  co-relation  is 
not  necessarily  a  consequence,  and  psychology  must 
first  establish  the  nature  of  the  connection  that  sub- 
sists between  mind  and  structural  organization,  before 
any  argument  can  be  drawn  from  this  source  as  to 


152  man: 


intellectual  development.  Nor  does  it  alter  the  mat- 
ter to  argue  that  among  many  tribes  of  mankind  the 
mind,  wholly  given  to  the  necessities  of  animal  exist- 
ence, is  little  superior  to  that  of  the  brutes.  '  The 
elements  of  improvability  are  there,  or  at  all  events  in 
the  human  intellect ;  and  this  improvability  has  never 
manifested  itself  among  the  lower  animals,  which  re- 
main now  as  they  were  from  their  beginnings.  There- 
must  be  some  essential  difference,  therefore,  between 
man  and  the  animals  that  stand  next  beneath  him,, 
and  it  is  this  difference,  taken  in  its  totality,  that  con- 
stitutes the  new  special  endowment  in  the  develop- 
ment of  the  human  species.  That  this  endowment 
has  been  evolved  by  means  operating  in  conformity 
with  a  great  aboriginal  and  all-embracing  plan,  and 
not  a  thing  brought  about  either  by  a  direct  and 
independent  act,  or  by  the  ordinary  course  of  repro- 
duction, is  the  doctrine  which  science  is  trying  to 
establish.  If  the  development  hypothesis  means  more 
than  this,  we  cannot  accept  it ;  if  it  means  less, 
natural  science  may  cease  to  contend  for  it.  "For 
our  own  part,"  as  we  have  elsewhere  observed  when 
treating  of  the  same  subject,*  "believing  as  we  do  that 
life  in  all  its  relations — its  incomings  and  outgoings  in 
time,  its  modifications  in  form,  and  its  distribution 
over  space— are  under  the  incessant  operation  of  fixed 

*  Past  and  Present  Life  of  the  Globe. 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  153 


and  determinable  laws,  we  are  as  free  to  entertain  the 
question  of  vitality  as  we  are  to  entertain  the  forma- 
tion of  a  stratum  of  sandstone  or  the  aggregation  of  a 
mineral  crystal ;  but  this  we  cannot  do  unless  at  every 
6tage  of  our  reasoning  we  associate  a  superintending 
with  a  creative  intellect.  And  we  have  yet  to  learn 
wherein  the  variation  of  a  natural  law,  or  the  variation 
of  a  well  known  form  of  life — even  to  the  ten-thous- 
andth deoree — is  less  an  act  of  the  Creator  than  the  ' 
original  establishment  of  that  law,  or  the  original  call- 
ins'  of  that  life-form   into  existence."     The   method 


has   no   existence  till   evoked ;  the  means  no   power 
unless  sustained  and  kept  in  harmonious  operation. 

In  this  view  the  development  theory  as  applicable 
to  the  human  race  is  not  necessarily  degrading;  for  be 
man's  origin  direct  or  descensive,  he  springs  alike 
from  inorganic  elements,  partakes  of  the  same  animal 
nature,  and  all  that  ennobles  him  above  other  crea- 
tures belongs  truly  to  the  soul  and  intellect.  If,  in 
virtue  of  some  yet  unexplained  process,  he  has  de- 
rived his  descent  from  any  ot  the  lower  orders,  he  is 
clearly  not  of  them — his  higher  structural  adaptations 
and  improvable  reason  defining  at  once  the  speciality 
of  his  place  and  the  responsibility  of  his  functions. 
It  can  be  no  degradation  to  have  descended  from 
some  antecedent  form  of  life,  any  more  than  it  can  be 
an  exaltation  to  have  been  fashioned  directly  from  the 
dust  of  the  earth.     There  can  be  nothing  "degrad- 


15-4 


MAX 


imi "?  or  li  d:  g :"  in  the  connection  which  nature 

has  obviously  established  between  all  ths  :  and 

those  who  employ  sue'.  must  hav<:  or, 

and  by  no  means  very  reverent,  conception  of  the 
scheme  of  creation.  The  truth  is;  there  is  nothing 
defradin£r  in  nature  save  that  which,  forgetf.d  of  its 
own  functions,  debases  and  degrades  itself.  The  jib- 
ing and  jeering  at  the  idea  of  an  "aj  5-ancestry,"  so 
often  resorted  to  by  the  ignorant,  has  in  reality  no 

ace  to  the  mind  of  the  philosophic  natnrali 
There     is    evidently    one    structural  running 

throughout  the  whole  of  vitality,  and  after  which 
myriad   members   have  been    ascensively  developed, 
just  as  there  is  oo     g  ial  plan  \  g  the 

planetary  system  :  and  science  merely  seeks  to 
that  plan,  and  to  determine  the  principles  upon  which 
it  is  constructed.     If  there  be  no  genetic  connection 
between  man  and  the  order  that  stands        :t  bene; 
him,  there  is  ai   all  events  a   mar  in 

structural  organization,  and  this   sin.:  is  sur 

susrgestive   i  ethin£  more  intimate   tib  -re 

coincidence.     Call  it  development,  or  call  it  what  y 

ill,  it  is  clearly  the  same  e  iral  idea  prevading 

the  Creative  Mind,  and  recc  i  ' :  _ .  according  to  a  pre- 
determined plan  of  progression,  certai  i  >ns  in 
time  which  mark  its  onward  and  upward  expansion. 
ignorant  jibing  can  deter  from  research  into  this 
wonderful  unity  oi            ,  no  bigoted  calumnies  will 


HIS    GENETIC    RELATIONS.  155 


prevent  the  expression  of  opinions  which  find  their 
verification  in  the  facts  of  nature.  Y\re  do  not  advo- 
cate the  development  hypothesis  from  hostility  to 
other  beliefs  or  theories,  for  every  honest  effort  to 
throw  light  on  the  history  of  our  race  should  meet 
with  respectful  consideration  ;  nor  do  we  contend  that 
it  has  yet  established  its  claims  to  belief;  but  we  are 
anxious  that  its  views  be  fairly  stated  and  placed  be- 
yond misrepresentation.  This  is  what  we  have  espe- 
cially aimed  at  in  the  preceding  pages — putting  the 
argument  suggestively  rather  than  contending  dog- 
matically  for  its  adoption.  Surely  men  may  discuss 
the  merits  of  an  hypothesis  without  committing  them- 
selves to  its  opinions;  charitably  they  may  listen  to 
the  beliefs  of  another  without  foregoing  their  own 
convictions.  By  no  other  method  will  human  knowl- 
edge ever  be  increased;  upon  no  other  principle  can 
truth  ever  be  established. 

Our  seventh  proposition,  therefore,  is  that  man's 
origin  being  placed  far  beyond  the  limits  of  his  own 
experience,  resolves  itself  into  a  question  of  natural- 
history  research  and  philosophical  inference ;  that 
man  being  inseparably  associated  with  the  great 
scheme  of  vitality,  the  same  methods  of  investigation 
must  be  applied  to  him  as  to  the  other  members  of 
that  scheme;  and  applying  these  methods — partly 
from  physiological  observation  of  variations  in   exist- 


156 


MAX 


ing  species,  and  partly  from  pala?ontological  discovery 
of  similar  variations  in  extinct  species — we  arrive  at 
the  inference  that  there  has  been  a  gradual  develop- 
ment of  higher  from  lower  and  antecedent  life-forms, 
and  this  for  man  as  well  as  for  other  animals.  And 
finally,  that  this  inference  of  vital  development,  under 
the  operating  forces  of  the  universe,  affords  at  once  a 
method  comprehensible  by  the  human  intellect,  and 
in  accordance  with  all  we  know  of  the  order  and 
origin  of  other  natural  phenomena  which  invariably 
take  place  though  the  instrumentality  of  means  and 
processes.  As  an  hypothesis,  it  is  not  upheld  even  by 
its  most  enthusiastic  supporters,  as  sufficient  to  lead  to 
the  origin  of  Life  ;  but  it  is  raised  as  the  only  index- 
finger  that  has  yet  indicated,  with  any  degree  of 
satisfaction,  the  way  to  vital  methods  and  to  vital 
relationships. 


Such  are  the  relations — historical,  geological,  and 
genetic — which  indicate  men's  Whence,  or  the  mea- 
sure of  his  antiquity  and  probable  origin,  and  from 
which  the  following  inferences  may  be  drawn  :  1. 
That  we  can  derive  no  certain  information  respecting 
the  antiquity  of  man  either  from  oral  tradition  or 
from  written  history,  the  former  being  so  vague  and 
unreliable,  and  the  latter  so  partial  and  recent — to  say 
nothing  of  the  absurdity  of  expecting  history  before 
men  had  learned  to  record,  or  reminiscences  of  time 


HIS    GEXETIC    RELATIONS.  157 


before  the  period  of  remembrance.  2.  That,  appeal- 
ing to  geology,  we  find  in  Western  Europe  remains 
of  man,  and  of  his  works,  in  lake-silts,  cave-earths, 
river-drifts,  and  other  superficial  accumulations,  which, 
judging  from  the^slow  increment  of  such  formations, 
would  involve  a  lapse  of  time  far  beyond  the  com- 
monly-received chronology  ;  and  that  this  inference  of 
high  antiquity  is  greatly  corroborated  by  the  discovery 
of  extinct  animals  in  these  deposits— animals  fitted  for 
colder  climates  than  that  of  Europe,  thus  implying 
extensive  oscillations  in  the  distribution  of  sea  and 
land  (and  consequently  vast  periods)  by  which  these 
climatic  changes  were  effected.  And  further,  that, 
high  as  the  antiquity  of  man  may  be  in  Western 
Europe,  it  does  not  fix  the  limit  of  his  age  in  North- 
ern Africa  or  Asia,  from  whence  all  history  and  tradi- 
tion traces  the  descent  of  European  peoples ;  nor  does 
it  arrest  the  inference  that  the  men  of  Asia,  ancient  as 
they  may  have  been,  were  descended  from  still  earlier 
and  more  primitive  races.  3.  That,  reviewing  the 
whole  animal  scheme,  and  seeing  how  thoroughly, 
both  in  the  living  and  in  the  extinct,  it  is  pervaded  by 
unity  of  plan,  we  are  constrained  to  apply  to  man  the 
tame  methods  of  research  we  apply  to  other  animals, 
and  to  extend  to  him  whatever  hypothesis  may  be 
advanced  to  account  for  the  origin  of  the  others. 
Applying  these  methods,  and  knowing  from  physio- 
logy there  is  a  principle  of  variation  at  work  among 


15S  MAN. 


existing  animals,  and  learning  from  palaeontology  that 
under  a  similar  principle  of  variation  there  has  heen  a 
gradual  ascent  in  time  from  lower  to  higher  life-forms, 
we  are  naturally  led  to  infer  a  process  of  ascensive 
development,  by  which  the  higher  spring  from  the 
lower,  and  the  highest  from  those  that  stand  next  be- 
neath them.  And  finally,  that  in  this  way,  and  under 
the  operation  of  physical  forces,  and  in  conformity 
with  a  great  aboriginal  plan,  a  genetic  connection  is 
established  between  the  whole  animal  scheme,  and  an 
origin  assigned  to  man,  the  nature  of  which  may  be 
traced  and  submitted  to  the  ordinary  rules  of  scientific 
investigation. 


WHITHER? 


PROGRESSIVE  RELATIONS. 

Natural  Tendency  to  be  interested  in  the  Future — Incessant 
Change  and  Progress  in  Nature — Extinction  and  Creation  ever 
coincident — Higher  Physical  Developments — No  Abatement 
of  Cosmical  Forces — Intellectual  and  Moral  Ascension — 
Newer  and  Higher  Varieties  of  Man — This  Progression  jn 
Obvious  Operation — Effect  of  Geological  Changes— Differ- 
ences among  Men  lessened  but  not  obliterated  by  Higher 
Developments — Our  Eighth  Proposition. 

Haying  glanced  at  man's  Where,  or  the  relations  lie 
bears  to  the  present,  and  having  endeavored  to  dis- 
cover his  Whence,  or  his  relative  antiquity  and  origin, 
we  are  now  in  a  position  to  indicate  with  some  dgree 
of  probability  his  Whither,  or  the  course  that  still  lies 
before  him.  As  it  is  only  from  the  order  of  the  pres- 
ent that  we  can  judge  of  the  operations  of  the  past,  so 
it  is  from  a  knowledge  of  the  past  and  present,  com- 
bined with  the  belief  in  nature's  continuitv,  that  we 
can  form  any  intelligible  conception  of  that  which 
must  follow.  As  it  is  a  law  of  our  nature  to  take  an 
interest  in  that  which  precedes  our  own  being,  so  we 
11 


162  man: 

are  similarly  compelled  to  look  forward  far  beyond  the 
period  of  our  existence.  As  we  derive  most  obvious 
benefits  from  a  knowledge  of  the  past,  so  we  may  se- 
cure some  gratification  from  an  indication  of  the 
future.  It  is  extending,  as  it  were,  the  limit  of  our 
being,  and  embracing  a  wider  view  of  creation  than 
that  which  naturally  falls  beneath  the  cognizance  of 
our  living  existence — a  glimpse  beyond  the  threescore 
and  ten  that  ordinarily  rounds  the  period  of  our  earth- 
ly endurance.  We  are  ever  in  care  and  anxiety  about 
our  own  individual  future ;  can  we  refrain  from  look- 
ing into  the  future  of  our  race — a  future  to  which 
every  act  of  our  own  is  a  contribution  either  for  good 
or  for  evil — an  impulse  to  progress,  or  a  check  to 
advancement  ? 

In  trying  to  arrive  at  some  intelligible  conception 
of  the  future  relations  of  our  race,  we  must  be  guided 
exclusively  by  what  we  have  learned  of  the  past,  and 
by  the  belief  that  the  methods  of  nature  are  unchange- 
able and  enduring.  Than  this,  reason  has  no  other 
course,  and  when  logically  followed  we  are  bound  to 
accept  its  deductions.  If  then  paleontology  has 
determined  a  progressive  ascent  from  lower  to  higher 
life-forms  in  the  past,  and  physiology  admits  a  prin- 
ciple of  variation  at  work  in  the  present,  we  may  rest 
assured  the  process  of  ascensive  development  is  still 
elaborating  newer  and  higher  forms  for  the  future. 
All  the  forces  of  nature,  physical  and  vital,   are  as 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  163 


active  and  operative  as  ever,  and  if  to  them  we  ascribe 
in  any  degree  the  vital  changes  that  have  taken  place, 
so  through  their  instrumentality  we  must  look  for 
similar  changes  to  follow.  So  far  as  science  can  de- 
termine, there  is  in  nature  no  abatement  of  force,  no 
change  of  method  ;  and  it  were  reversing  every  prin- 
ciple of  reasoning  to  suppose  that  under  these  circum- 
stances life  had  ceased  to  diverge  or  had  found  its 
culmination  in  man.  It  is  true  that  to  whatever 
process  we  ascribe  the  introduction  of  new  species,  its 
operation  is  so  slow  and  gradual,  that  centuries  may 
pass  away  before  its  results  become  discernible.  But 
no  matter  how  slow ;  timejs  without  limit,  and  if  we 
can  trace  a  process  of  variation  at  work,  it  is  sure  to 
widen  in  the  long  run  into  what  are  regarded  as 
specific  distinctions.  It  is  nolnvalidaticn  of  this  ar- 
gument that  science  cannot  point  to  the  introduction 
of  any  new  species  within  the  historic  era,  for  till 
within  a  century  or  so  science  took  no  notice  either 
of  the  introduction  or  extinction  of  species,  nor  was  it 
sufficiently  acquainted  with  the  flora  and  fauna  of  the 
globe  to  determined  the  amount  of  variation  that  was 
taking  place  among  their  respective  families.  Indeed, 
influenced  by  the  belief  that  the  life  of  the  globe  was 
the  result  of  one^creative  act,  men  were  unwilling  to 
look  at  the  long  past  which  j;he  infant  science  of  pal- 
aeontology was  beginning  to  reveal,  and  never  deigned 
to  doubt  that  the  future  would  be  otherwise  than  the 


164  man: 


present.  Even  still  there  are  certain  minds  who  ig- 
nore all  that  geology  has  taught  concerning  the  extinc- 
tion of  old  races  and  introduction  of  newer  ones,  and 
who,  shutting  their  eyes  to  the  continuity  of  nature, 
cannot  perceive  that  the  same  course  of  extinction 
and  creation  must  ever  be  in  progress. 

Nor  is  it  any  valid  argument  in  support  of  an  oppo- 
site view  that  the  animals  depicted  on  the  monuments 
of  Egypt  are  the  same  now  as  they  were  three  thou- 
sand years  ago,  and  that  if  a  law  of  variation  had  been 
in  operation,  some  perceptible  change  ought  to  have 
been  observable  in  such  a  lengthened  period.     Setting 
aside  the  briefness  of  the  time  as  compared  with  the 
seons  of  geology,  and  the  character  of  the  depictments, 
upon  which  no  zoologist  could  found  minute  specific 
distinctions,  the  great  facts  remain,  that  the  animals. 
are  mainly   local,    and  that  the  valley   of    the   Nile 
has  undergone  little  or  no  physical  change  for  ages — 
those  changes  of  external  conditions,  which,  if   not 
the  sole  cause,  are  at  least  most  intimately  connected 
with  variations   in   vegetable   and  animal  existences. 
Change  the  conditions  ;  let  Northern  Africa  gradually 
sink,  and  the  sea  roll,  as  it  once  rolled,  over  the  Sa- 
hara and   Libyan  desert ;  and   three  thousand  years 
hence  say  what  might  be  the  difference  in  the  flora 
and  fauna  of  the   conterminous   highlands  !     In  the 
mean  time,  however,  our  belief  in  progressive  ascen- 
sion must  rest  mainly  on  the  order  that  palaeontology 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  165 


lias  discovered  in  the  past,  and  on  the  facts  of  varia- 
tion that  physiology  admits  in  the  existing.  And  it  is 
further  confirmed  by  the  inference,  that  as  extinctions 
and  creations  were  ever  coincident  in  the  past,  so  the 
extinction  of  species  that  has  taken  place  within  the 
last  few  centuries  must  be  followed  in  time  by  the  in- 
troduction of  others.  In  fine,  unless  we  believe  that 
the  scheme  of  Life  has  culminated  in  the  present  or- 
ders, and  that  further  progression  is  impossible — and 
this  were  to  ignore  all  the  teachings  of  the  past  and 
experiences  of  the  present — there  is  no  alternative  but 
to  admit  that  as  the  evolution  of  vitality  has  ever  been 
upward  and  onward,  so  it  will  continue  to  be  onward 
and  upward  still. 

As  concerns  man,  this  progression  is  sufficiently  ob- 
vious from  the  fact  that  the  lower  varieties  of  his  race 
are  gradually  disappearing  before  the  advance  of  the 
higher,  and  the  higher  as  gradually  assuming  more 
exalted  positions,  physically,  intellectually,  and  moral- 
ly. All  that  we  learn  from  the  history  of  the  old 
world  confirms  the  aggressive  ascension  of  the  higher 
and  advancing  nationalities,  all  our  experience  of  the 
present  points  to  the  extinction  of  the  inferior  varie- 
ties— Red  Indian,  Bushman,  Australian,  and  New 
Zealander — before  the  spread  of  the  European.  And 
rapid  as  this  extirpation  has  been  during  the  last  two 
centuries,  it  will  be  greatly  accelerated  by  the  new 
means  of  intercommunication,  the  introduction  of  ma- 


166  MAN 


chinery,  and  other  civilized  appliances  that  mark  more 
especially  the  progress  of  the  current  century.  If 
clothing  lias  already  brought  disease  to  the  South  Sea 
Islander,*  if  the  social  vices  of  the  White  man  have 
decimated  the  Eed,  and  the  cultivation  of  the  wilder- 
ness destroyed  the  buffalo  on  which  he  mainly  de- 
pends, and  if  neither  Indian  nor  Australian  can  settle 
down  to  habits  of  peaceful  industry, f  how  shall  it  fare 
with  them  when  the  steamship  is  plying  along  every 
coast,  and  the  railway  and  electric  telegraph  are 
spread  like  a  network  over  every  continent?  If  the 
limited  emigration  of  a  former  century  has  already 
done  so  much  to  change  the  natural  aspects,  and  in- 
fluence the  aborigines  of  America  and  Australasia,  how 
shall  we  estimate  the  results  of  quadrupled  numbers 
and  a  tenfold  tide  of  trade  and  commerce  ?    And  when 

*  The  South  Sea  Islanders  maintain  that  colds  and  coughs  were 
unknown  among  them  till  they  hegan  to  clothe  themselves  in  com- 
pliance with  civilized  decorum. 

t  "Maugre  some  evidence  to  the  contrary,'' says  Captain  Burton, 
in  his  notes  to  Marcy's  Prairie  Traveller,  "1  still  believe  that  the 
North  American  aborigiue,  like  the  Tasmanian  and  the  Australian, 
is  but  a  temporary  denizen  of  the  world,  who  fails  in  the  first 
struggle  with  nature.  He  is  like  a  wild  animal,  to  be  broken  but  not 
to  be  tamed,  as  the  wolf  can  be  taught  to  refrain  from  worrying, 
but  cannot  be  made  to  act  as  a  dog.  In  his  wild  state  the  Indian 
falls  before  the  white  man.  Settled  and  civilized,  he  dies  of  acute 
disease.  He  has  virtually  disappeared  from  the  wide  region  east  of 
the  Mississippi ;  and  the  same  causes,  still  ceaselessly  operating, 
point  to  his  annihilation  when  the  prairie-lands  shall  have  become 
the  grazing-gruunds  of  the  Western  World/' 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  167 


the  white  man  has  taken  full  possession  of  the  New 
World,  of  Australia,  and  New  Zealand,  his  influence 
will  be  felt  (it  is  already  felt)  on  the  eastern  frontier  of 
the  Old — on  the  Mongol  and  Malay  elements  of  his 
race,  which  are  evidently  destined  in  turn  to  make 
way  for  the  higher  and  more  progressive.  As  he  has 
already  crossed  the  Atlantic,  so  will  he  cross  the 
Pacific,  carrying  with  him  augmented  energies  and 
higher  conceptions  of  his  functional  relations.  We 
say  augmented  energies,  for  it  is  a  curious  fact,  how- 
ever we  may  try  to  acccount  for  it  that  the  men  of 
North  America,  and  especially  those  on  the  Pacific 
side,  as  well  as  the  settlers  in  Australia  and  New 
Zealand,  seem  to  acquire  new  elasticity  of  mind  and 
muscle,  a  greater  rapidity  of  progression  as  it  were, 
by  transference  to  their  new  localities.  Be  it  the  result 
of  external  conditions  or  of  the  interfusion  of  different 
but  nearly  related  bloods,  such  is  the  fact,  and  such 
will  be  its  accelerated  results  on  the  conterminous  terri- 
tories of  the  Old  World,  and  their  old  but  stationary 
populations. 

To  some,  this  incessant  extirpation  of  the  weak,  and 
this  incessant  advancement  of  the  strong,  may  seem  a 
stern  and  harsh  law  of  nature ;  but  such  are  the  facts ; 
and,  as  has  been  aptly  observed,  "  it  is  a  false  senti- 
mentalism  that  cannot  look  facts  in  the  face — an 
unsound  reverence  that  models  Providence  after  its 
own  fashion."     The  whole  history  of  the  Old  World 


168  man: 


is  but  a  record  of  decline  and  progress — the  extinction 
of  the  old  and  effete,  and  the  advancement  of  the 
young  and  vigorous.  See  the  long  procession — Chal- 
deans, Egyptians,  Phcenicians,  Hebrews,  Pelasgians, 
Greeks,  Romans,  Moors,  Celts,  Franks,  and  Anglo- 
Saxons — the  earlier  ever  passing  out  of  view,  and  the 
later  ever  appearing,  but  appearing  only  to  follow ! 
Such  has  it  ever  been :  is  there  aught  in  the  present 
to  invalidate  the  inference  that  such  it  will  ever  con- 
tinue to  be?  To  some,  also,  it  may  look  more  like 
the  dreams  of  enthusiasm  than  the  speculations  of 
sober  science,  to  hint  that  the  millions  of  China, 
Japan,  and  Malay,  with  their  old  civilizations  and 
social  systems,  must  melt  away  before  the  advance  of 
the  white  man  ;  but  the  men  of  Europe  and  of  North 
America  have  already  planted  their  feet  on  these 
shores,  and  partial  amalgamation  or  extirpation  is 
only  a  question  of  time  and  of  mental  and  material 
appliances.  There  may  be  ebbs  and  flows  in  this  tide 
of  advancement,  just  as  there  were  ebbs  and  flows 
among  the  old  nationalities  of  Western  Asia  and 
Europe,  but  in  the  long  run  the  current  has  ever 
been  forward.  Can  we  cease,  with  all  the  experience 
of  the  past,  and  all  the  knowledge  of  the  present 
before  us,  to  believe  that  the  current  will  continue  to 
be  forward  still  ? 

Nor  can  progress  stop  with  the  white  man.     In  vir- 
tue of  the  great  law  of  cosmical  progression,  the  white 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  169 


will  be  superseded  by  higher  varieties,  and  the  man  of 
the  future  will  excel  the  man  of  the  present,  even 
more  than  the  most  exalted  European  philosopher 
excels  the  wretched  Bushman  or  Andamaner.  Nor 
will  this  ascent  be  restricted  to  his  physical  nature 
merely,  for  the  nobler  varieties  have  hitherto  been  the 
more  intellectual,  and  thus  things  impossible  and  in- 
comprehensible now  will  in  the  future  become  possible 
and  easy  of  comprehension.*  To  gainsay  this  were  to 
affirm  that  physiologically  the  homologies  of  the 
vertebrate  skeleton  had  been  exhausted  in  the  struc- 
tural adaptations  of  man,  and  to  deny  that  psychologi- 
cally the  co-relation  of  a  noble  intellect  with  a  higher 
organization  was  impossible.  It  were  to  contradict, 
moreover,  all  human  experience,  for  whatever  we 
glean  from  history  or  learn  from  the  present  points  to 


*  Participating  in  this  opinion,  but  applying  it  to  bis  own  special 
field  of  study,  Professor  Owen  bas  tbc  following  in  the  preface  to 
his  Comparative  Anatomy  and  Physiology  of  the  Vertebrata  :  "  In 
the  lapse  of  ages,  hypotbetically  invoked  for  the  mutation  of  spe- 
cific distinctions,  I  would  remark  that  man  is  not  likely  to  preserve 
his  longer  than  contemporary  species  theirs.  Seeing  the  greater 
variety  of  influences  to  which  he  is  subject,  the  present  characters 
of  the  human  kind  are  likely  to  be  sooner  changed  than  those  of 
lower  existing  species.  And  with  such  change  of  specific  character, 
especially  if  it  should  be  in  the  ascensive  direction,  there  might  be 
associated  powers  of  penetrating  the  problems  of  zoologj-,  so  far 
transcending  those  of  our  present  condition  as  to  be  equivalent  to 
a  different  and  higher  phase  of  intellectual  action,  resulting  in 
what  might  be  termed  another  species  of  zoological  science." 


170 


the  B]  i  ad  progress  of  the   hi  and  the  dis- 

appearance of  the  low  itli  the  spread  of  the 

•  relatioi   . 

and   the   gradual  imp  and    amelioration   of 

hu  I'  *  the  I  I  civil- 

have  txch  to   lourn,   n  to 

combat   with,    and    much    a  •  ■  :    but 

bu."  ion  of  tl 

■ 

■  not  only  all  tl.  I  >e- 

fore,  out  ler  and  ei 

It  is  true  that,  in  the  man, 

for  supr<  -  -.il 

pa  ist;  but  as  i  a  and  refii    - 

ment  ■  curb- 

and  a  n. 

D  is  truf-.  ith 

na' 
but   with 

irel  ■  ;  ■  ■ 

the  i"  prot<    - 

tion  or  for  destruction  bee 

fare  of  much  of  its  protracted  :.  nd  brutal 

barbarities.     And  as  this  and  otl 

pith  the  d< 
the  future  will  hi  attair 

salted  varietii  . 
ilL    All  tl 
terna]   oatm  r  and   incessantly         sing  into 


HB    PROGRESSIVE    RELATI    SS.               171 
t 

newer  and  other  phases ;  all  that  we  have  learned  of 
past  life  marks  an  ascent  from  lower  to  higher  and 
higher  forms;  all  that  we  can  gather  from  history 
marks  a  similar  mutation  and  progress  in  the  intellect- 
ual, social,  and  moral  relations  of  man.  Baces  may 
come  and  go,  nationalities  may  rise  and  fall,  bnt  still 
the  aggregate  movement  of  human!:  3  ever  been 
onward  and  upward.  We  may  point  to  Babylonians, 
Egyptians,  Phoenicians,  Greeks,  and  Roma:>.  as  at- 
taining each  to  exalted  stages  of  civilization ;  but  the 
latter  ever  evolved  some  new  phase  unknown  to  those 
who  went  before,  and  exercised  a  wid  if  not  a 
higher,  influence.  Nothing  has  stood  stilL  Art  and 
science,  literature  and  philosophy,  ethics  and  religion, 
have  all  alike  partaken  of  this  onward  and  upward 
development:  shall  we  cease  to  have  iaith  in  their 
future  ascension  ?  ne  gave  way  to  bronze,  and 

bronze  to  iron,  so  have  simple  hand-implements  given 
pla::  :  s :-":-: -:- _nlating  machinery  ;  and  as  in  n: 
of  mere  mechanical  handicraft,  so  in  the  matters  of 
the  intellect  and  reason,  in  science,  literature,  phil- 
osophy, and  social  polity.  Look  at  the  old  monosyl- 
labic Ian,,  gages  Asia,  and  compare  them 
with  the  facile  and  inflectional  tongues  of  Gree 
-  me,  and  Western  Europe  ;  at  the  cumbrous  system 
: :  symbol  and  hieroglyph,  as  compared  with  the  let- 
id  literature  of  modern  times ;  or  at  the  slow, 
uncertain,  and  restricted  literature  of  manuscript  as 


172  man: 


compared  with  that  of  the  printing-press  ;  and  the 
argument  should  require  no  further  illustration. 
Even  in  that  which  is  regarded  as  the  highest  distin- 
guish feature  in  man — his  religious  sentiments — there 
has  been  a  similar  and  upward  development.  From 
Feticism  to  Pantheism,  from  Pantheism  to  Judaism, 
and  from  Judaism  to  Christianity,  we  can  trace  the 
ascent;  and  even  now,  under  the  various  phases  of  its 
profession,  Christianity  itself  is  gradually  obtaining  a 
purer  practice  and  wider  recognition.  Nothing  stands 
still ;  and  not  to  believe  that  the  existing  varieties  of 
mankind  will  pass  away,  and  the  highest  be  super- 
seded by  others  more  highly  organized  and  more 
nobly  endowed,  would  be  to  shut  our  eyes  against  all 
the  teachings  of  the  past,  and  obstinately  to  resist  the 
•clearest  deductions  of  reason. 

We  are  aware  that  many,  influenced  by  old  beliefs, 
regard  the  whole  scheme  of  vitality  as  culminating  and 
terminating  with  their  own  race.  In  their  view  crea- 
tion  was  an  act  rather  than  a  work ;  a  thing  accom- 
plished within  a  given  time  rather  than  a  process 
which  has  been  going  qu  from  the  beginning  and  is 
still  coins:  forward.  As  man  was  the  latest  effort  of 
creation,  so  to  their  minds  he  must  be  the  last ;  and  as 
he  was  formed,  according  to  the  Hebrew  cosmogony, 
"in  the  image  of  his  Maker,"  so  none  other  can  tran- 
scend him.  But  to  what  section  of  mankind  shall  we 
apply  this  statement  ?     To  the  dusky  Negro  or  to  the 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  173 


fair  Caucasian  ?  to  the  savage  Australian  or  to  the  en- 
lightened European  ?  As  a  broad  generalized  demar- 
cation between  man  and  the  lower  animals,  this 
statement,  which  is  only  in  harmony  with  the  whole 
anthropomorphising  tendency  of  the  Hebrew  cosmog- 
ony, may  be  received  without  dissent ;  but  as  implying 
a  limit  to  creative  law  it  was  never  meant  and  cannot 
be  accepted.  Physically  and  mentally  there  are  vast 
differences  between  existing  races,  and  consequently 
equally  wide  capabilities  of  rising  to  higher  stages. 
These  differences,  if  they  mean  anything,  refer  to 
periods — periods  of  time,  each  characterized  by  its 
own  variety  of  man,  just  as  they  are  palseontologically 
characterized  by  their  own  special  floras  and  faunas  ; 
and  of  course  conforming  to  the  great  law  of  cosmical 
progress,  by  which  the  latest  is  ever  in  ascent  of  that 
which  preceded  it.  Losing  sight  of  this  law,  and  of 
the  immense  differences  that  exist  between  the  differ- 
ent varieties  of  mankind,  other  theorists,  and  among 
them  Professor  Agassiz,  "think  it  can  be  shown  by 
anatomical  evidence  that  man  is  not  only  the  last 
and  highest  among  the  living  beings  of  the  present 
period,  but  that  he  is  the  last  term  of  a  series,  beyond 
which  there  is  no  material  progress  possible  in  accord- 
ance with  the  plan  upon  which  the  whole  animal 
kingdom  is  constructed ;  and  that  the  only  improve- 
ment we  can  look  for  upon  earth  for  the  future  must 
consist  in  the  development  of  man's  intellectual  and 


174  MAN 


moral  faculties."  *  Where,  however,  is  the  anatomical 
evidence  ?  Can  we  believe  that  the  adaptive  modifi- 
cations of  the  vertebrate  skeleton  have  been  exhausted 
in  the  structure  of  man?  Are  there  no  structural 
differences  between  the  Negro  and  the  Caucasian? 
Were  there  no  differences  between  the  innate  powers 
and  conceptions  of  the  races  who  raised  earth-mounds 
and  those  who  piled  up  pyramids  ?  nothing  ethnologi- 
cally  at  variance  between  those  who  reared  the  heathen 
temples  of  the  East  and  those  who  erected  the  Gothic 
cathedrals  of  Western  Europe  ?  Was  there  no  differ- 
ence of  power  in  the  eye  of  the  Egyptians  and  the  eye 
of  the  Ancient  Greeks  to  judge  of  beauty  and  propor- 
tion in  sculpture  ?  Is  there  no  difference  between  the 
eye  of  the  Mongol  and  the  eye  of  the  European  in 
their  respective  capacities  for  perspective  ?  As  there 
are  undeniably  immense  differences  between  existing 
races,  and  as  some  of  these  differences  have  been  evol- 
ved even  within  the  historic  era,  so  we  may  rely  on 
analogous  developments  in  the  future,  and  agree  with 
Professor  Owen  that,  "seeing  the  greater  variety  of 
influences  to  which  man  is  subject,  the  present  char- 
acters of  the  human  kind  are  likely  to  be  sooner 
changed  than  those  of  lower  existing  species."!  If 
there  can  be  no  material  progress  in  the  future,  how 


*  Essay  on  Classification,  pp.  31,  35. 

t  Comparative  Anatomy  and  Physiology  of  the  Vcrtebrata.- 
Introduction. 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  175 


shall  we  account  for  the  material  differences  that 
exist?  If  there  is  to  be  only  intellectual  and  noral 
development,  how  shall  we  explain  the  fact  that  the 
higher  attributes  of  mind  have  never  manifested  them- 
selves unless  eoincidently  with  the  rise  and  progress  of 
newer  and  higher  races?  As  physical  and  mental 
endowments  have  ever  been  concomitants  in  the  past, 
so  we  may  rest  assured  the  one  will  accompany  the 
other  in  the  future. 

Look  at  the  long  historical  past  of  the  Old  World 
races:  Turanian,  Khamite,  Semite,  and  Aryan.  See 
how  gradually  but  progressively  the  one  displaced  and 
superseded  the  other.  More  exalted  in  physical  form, 
more  fertile  in  ideas,  more  complex  and  expressive  in 
language,  less  material  in  religious  sentiment,  more 
generous  in  morals,  more  uniform  and  brotherly  in 
social  polity,  the  newer  ever  advanced,  and  the  older 
and  inferior  ever  declined.  For  the  last  five  thousand 
years  the  historical  platforms  of  Central  and  Western 
Asia,  of  Northern  Africa  and  Europe,  are  replete  with 
evidence  of  this  material,  mental,  and  moral  progres- 
sion, and  to  him  who  fails  to  comprehend  the  purport 
of  the  past  it  were  fruitless  to  endeavor  to  indicate  the 
course  of  the  future.  As  nationality  has  superseded 
nationality,  and  race  succeeded  race,  so  will  variety 
supersede  variety,  and  this  as  a  cosmical  necessity,  so 
long  as  the  existing  order  of  nature  endures  and  the 
forces  through  which  it  is  manifested  remain  unim- 


176  man: 


paired.  Palceontologically  or  historical!}',  nature  has 
never  repeated  herself;  and  where  there  is  no  re- 
petition there  must  be  declension  or  advancement. 
If  there  has  not  been  declension — and  the  most  stren- 
uous opposer  of  these  views  will  scarcely  venture  on 
such  an  assertion — there  must  have  been,  as  there  will 
continue  to  be,  advancement  and  progress. 

We  are  aware  it  may  be  argued,  that  as  geological 
changes  are  ever  bringing  about  new  distributions  of 
sea  and  land,  and  consequently  new  external  con- 
ditions, so  human  progression  in  the  future  might  be 
accelerated  or  retarded,  just  as  these  conditions  were 
favorable  or  unfavorable.  The  objection  is  not  with- 
out its  significance,  and  can  only  be  met  by  reference 
to  the  past ;  by  reasoning  that  as  the  course  of  life 
during  all  the  geological  mutations  of  the  world's  past 
has  ever  been  ascensive,  so  it  will  continue  to  be 
ascensive  in  the  future.  It  may  also  be  observed 
that  as  man  has  a  world-wide  distribution,  and  as  all 
oscillations  of  sea  and  land  are  slow,  and  gradual,  and 
local,  so  their  influence  on  his  progression  during  any 
epoch  can  only  be  partial  and  restricted.  It  may  be 
further  noticed,  though  the  laws  which  regulate  the 
distributions  of  sea  and  land  be  altogether  unknown, 
that  the  growth  of  existing  deltas  and  the  activity  of 
vulcanisni  chieliy  within  the  lower  latitudes,  leads  to 
the  inference  that  the  lands  immediately  following  the 
present  will  be  in  warmer  zones,  and  thus  afford,  other 


>7>7 


HIS    PROGRESSIVE    RELATIONS.  177 


things  being  equal,  a  more  congenial  home  for  man's 
development.  But  be  this  as  it  may,  our  indications 
of  the  future  must  depend  mainly  on  our  knowledge 
of  the  past,  and  on  our  faith  in  nature's  continuity, 
and  these  point  broadly  and  unmistakably  to  unin- 
terrupted ascension. 

It  may  also  be  questioned,  and  has,  indeed,  already 
been  questioned,  whether  any  one  variety  of  man, 
however  highly  organized  or  nobly  endowed,  could  be 
truly  cosmopolitan  ;  or  in  other  words,  whether  th  e 
white  man,  all  the  others  being  extinct,  is  fitted  to 
inhabit  and  make  progress  alike  under  every  clime 
and  every  latitude  ?  This  objection,  put  in  the  form 
of  a  question,  is  easily  met  and  replied  to.  No  advo- 
cate of  progressional  development  has  ever  contended 
for  universal  uniformity  of  race ;  no  one  knowing  the 
physical  causes  that  are  ever  tending  to  produce  varie- 
ty could  entertain  the  notion  that  present  progress 
would  terminate  in  the  obliteration  of  racial  distinc- 
tions. The  whole  history  of  the  past  is  marked  by  the 
existence  of  races  and  varieties ;  every  stage  of  human 
progress  has  been  characterized  by  higher  and  lower  ; 
and  so  long  as  climate,  physical  surroundings,  and 
other  influencing  conditions  continue  to  differ,  so  long 
will  ethnic  differences  prevail  among  mankind.  These 
differences,  taken  in  their  totality,  may  become  less 
and  less  at  every  succeeding  era  of  progression ;  but 
tropical,  temperate,  and  boreal  conditions,  favorable 
12 


178  MAN. 


and  unfavorable,  will  ever  continue  to  stamp  their 
impress ;  and  all  that  can  be  fairly  indicated  is  that 
mankind  will  rise  higher  and  higher  at  each  successive 
stage,  and  that  the  more  they  advance  the  fainter  will 
become  those  differences,  physical  and  moral,  which 
now  characterize  so  broadly  existing  varieties. 

Our  last  proposition,  therefore,  is,  that  as  there  has 
been  an  obvious  ascent  from  lower  to  higher  in  the 
past,  and  as  all  the  forces  of  nature,  physical  and 
vital,  upon  which  that  ascent  depended,  are  still  in 
full  and  harmonious  operation,  and  evince  no  symptoms- 
of  decay,  so  there  will  be  a  similar  progressive  ascen- 
sion in  the  future ;  and  that,  as  man  has  ever  partaken 
of  this  ascent,  structurally  and  intellectually,  as  is 
amply  evidenced  by  the  history  of  his  race,  so  will 
existing  varieties  pass  away  and  be  superseded  by 
others  more]  nobly  constructed  and  more  divinely- 
endowed. 


CONCLUSION. 


CONCLUSION. 

Summary  of  the  Argument — Its  Practical  and  Scientific  Bearings 
— Opposition  unavailing — Prospect  of  its  Adoption. 

Summing  up  our  inquiry,  the  question  of  man's 
Where,  Whence,  and  Whither  resolves  itself  into 
this: 

1.  That;  Zoologically,  man  and  other  animals  belong 
to  the  same  vital  scheme ;  that  this  scheme  is  based 
on  a  determinate  and  pervading  plan ;  that  adaptive 
modification  of  structural  parts  seems  to  be  the  prin- 
ciple according  to  which  the  higher  and  more  complex 
forms  are  evolved  from  the  lower  ;  and  that  this  con- 
nection establishes  relations  between  him  and  his  fel- 
low-creatures that  are  inseparable. 

2.  That,  Geographically,  man,  like  other  animals, 
is  influenced  by  his  physical  surroundings ;  that  these 
influences  extend  alike  to  his  material  and  mental 
nature ;  that  they  are  important  factors  in  the  pro- 
duction of  variation  among  mankind  ;  and  that,  taken 


182  MAN 


in  connection  with  the  principle  of  adaptive  modifica- 
tion, they  afford  some  indication  of  the  methods 
through  which  vital  development  is  effected. 

3.  That,  Ethnologically,  man  appears  in  several 
great  varieties  distinguished  by  mental  as  well  as  by 
physical  characteristics  ;  that  the  study  of  these  char- 
acteristics leads  us  to  regard  some  as  higher  and  others 
as  lower  in  the  scale  of  being  ;  that,  judging  from  all 
we  can  learn  from  history,  tradition,  and  analogy,  the 
higher  must  be  the  more  recent  and  the  lower  the 
more  ancient  varieties  ;  and  that,  carrying  out  this 
principle  of  descent,  the  lowest  known  variety  may 
have  been'  preceded  by  others  lower  and  lower  in  pro- 
portion to  their  antiquity. 

4.  That,  Functionally,  man,  like  other  animals,  has 
his  relations  to  external  nature  the  requirements  of 
which  are  imperative ;  that,  being  endowed  with 
higher  mental  as  well  as  with  higher  structural  ca- 
pabilities, he  exercises  a  wider  influence  on  vitality 
than  other  animals ;  that  in  virtue  of  this  influence, 
and  according  to  his  civilization,  he  extirpates,  dis- 
seminates, and  modifies  plant-life  and  animal-life  ;  and 
that  in  proportion  to  his  superiority  he  in  like  manner 
modifies  his  own  race,  the  higher  ever  passing  over 
the  lower,  and  the  earlier  ever  disappearing  before  the 
spread  of  the  recent  and  advancing. 

5.  That,  Historically,  we  can  have  no  certain  evi- 
dence of  the  outcomings  and  incomings  of  those  early 


conclusion.  183 


races  which  preceded  all  history ;  that,  even  were 
tradition  reliable  and  history  certain,  it  is  as  impossi- 
ble for  the  race  as  it  is  for  the  individual  to  trace  itself 
back  to  its  origin  ;  that  we  can  only  arrive  at  a  notion 
of  man's  antiquity  by  inductive  reasoning  from  the  evo- 
lution of  nationalities,  the  growth  of  language,  and  the 
progress  of  civilization  ;  and  that  this  induction  for  all 
prehistoric  time  must  be  founded  exclusively  on  the 
discoveries  of  geology. 

6.  That,  Geologically,  there  is  the  amplest  evidence 
of  man  having  been  an  inhabitant  of  Western  Europe 
for  ages  preceding  the  popularly  received  chronology ; 
that  man's  occupation  of  Europe  does  not  fix  the 
measure  of  his  antiquity  in  Northern  Africa  and  Asia, 
to  which  everything  points  as  the  region  from  which 
the  races  of  Europe  were  descended  ;  that  the  dis- 
covery of  prehistoric  remains  in  Asia  could 'not  be 
received  as  the  earliest  of  indications  of  the  human  race> 
but  that  geology  must  seek  for  the  earliest  traces  of 
man  in  the  regions  that  are  now  occupied  by  the  low- 
est varieties — thus  implying  an  antiquity  for  the  human 
species  that  cannot  be  expressed  in  years  and  centuries, 
but  only  relatively  to  other  geological  events. 

7.  That,  Genetically,  man  must  deal  with  his  origin 
as  he  dea  with  his  other  natural-history  relations ; 
that,  as  he  is  inseparably  associated  with  the  great 
scheme  of  life,  so  he  must  apply  to  his  own  species 
whatever  genetic  process  he  may  seek  to  apply  to  his 


184  MAN 


fellow-creatures ;  that  if  there  be  a  plan  of  progressive 
development  such  as  natural  science  has  been  recently 
striving  to  establish,  by  which  the  higher  forms  of  life 
have  been  gradually  evolved  from  the  lower,  then  man 
must  seek  for  his  origin  in  the  same  course  of  develop- 
ment ;  that  this  hypothetical  process,  as  applied  to» 
man,  does  not  involve  anything  either  degrading  or 
materialistic,  but  is  simply  an  effort  of  science  to  pre- 
sent some  comprehensible  indication  of  the  creative- 
method,  which,  so  far  as  we  can  perceive,  works  only 
through  means  and  processes ;  and  that  though  the 
process  could  be  proved  to  demonstration,  it  would  still 
leave  untouched  the  plan  to  which  all  the  ascensive 
orders  of  life  have  ever  conformed,  and  which  can  only 
be  resolved  into  the  will  of  the  Creator. 

And  lastly,  that,  Progressively,  the  whole  history  of 
the  past  as  well  as  the  experience  of  the  present  point 
to  an  upward  ascension  of  vitality ;  that  all  the  forces 
of  nature  with  which  this  ascension  has  been  associated, 
or  upon  which  it  depends,  being  as  active  and  oper- 
ative as  ever,  we  may  fairly  infer  a  corresponding 
progression  in  the  future  ;  that  in  virtue  of  his  higher 
nature  the  progression  will  be  more  rapid  and  per- 
ceptible in  man  than  in  the  lower  animals ;  and  that 
physically,  intellectually,  socially,  and  morally,  the 
developments  of  the  future  will  transcend  the  man  of 
the  present,  as  far  as  the  man  of  the  present  transcends 
all  or  any  of  the  varieties  that  ever  went  before  him- 


conclusion.  185 


Such  are  the  conclusions  to  which  our  inquiry 
legitimately  leads,  and  which,  when  rightly  viewed, 
have  practical  as  well  as  mere  theoretic  bearings. 
We  say  practical  bearings,  for  no  subject,  however 
novel  or  sensational,  can  secure  a  position  among  the 
sciences,  or  excite  a  general  interest,  unless  it  has 
something  real  and  practical  to  recommend  it.  "  Phi- 
losophy," as  has  been  well  said,  "is  never  more  ex- 
alted than  when  she  stoops  to  administer  to  human- 
ity." From  a  knowledge  oi  our  zoological  relations, 
then,  we  may  learn  more  fully  the  nature  of  the  bond 
that  connects  us  with  our  fellow-creatures,  and  the 
offices  toward  them  we  are  bound  to  perform. 
Linked  to  them  by  the  closest  biological  ties,  yet 
raised  above  them  by  higher  physical  and  mental 
adaptations,  we  have  manifestly  duties  toward  them ; 
and  these  duties  must  surely  have  a  deeper  signifi- 
cance to  the  mind  of  one  who  knows  all  this,  than  to 
the  mind  of  another  who  remains  unfeelingly  ignorant 
of  the  relations  that  connect  him  with  the  rest  of 
vitality.  What  are  equally  with  ourselves  the  objects 
of  God's  care  cannot  surely  be  beneath  our  considera- 
tion ;  and  the  more  intimate  and  intelligent  this  con- 
sideration, the  better  will  we  be  enabled  to  shape  our 
conduct  toward  them  in  harmony  with  his  intentions. 
From  our  geographical  relations  we  may  perceive 
how  much  we  are  influenced  by  external  conditions, 
and  that  these  influences  should  not  be  lost  sight  of, 


186  man: 


cither  as  regards  the  physical  or  mental  peculiarities 
of  individuals  or  of  nations.  What  is  possible  for  one 
race  under  the  impress  of  physical  surroundings,  may 
be  impossible  for  another  under  different  influences ; 
and  what  may  be  suited  to  the  genius  of  one  nation, 
may  for  the  same  reason  be  abhorrent  to  another. 
How  absurd,  therefore,  to  look  for  uniformity  where 
nature  has  stamped  with  indelible  dissimilarity! 
How  unjust,  in  our  international  relations,  to  exact 
alike  where  nature  has  denied  the  means  of  equal 
fulfilment !  From  the  study  of  our  ethnological  rela- 
tions, we  may  learn  to  direct  more  wisely,  and  in 
accordance  with  nature's  intentions,  our  schemes  of 
territorial  acquisition,  civilization,  and  enlightenment. 
All  races,  as  well  from  their  inherent  natures  as  from 
the  nature  of  their  position,  cannot  be  dealt  with 
alike  ;  it  were  waste  of  energy  to  attempt  civilization 
where  nature  has  denied  the  capability,  and  it  were 
surely  wiser  to  remove  the  obstacles  to  improvement 
where  unprovability  exists,  than  to  seek  for  improve- 
ment where  experience  has  told  us  it  is  hopelessly 
impossible.  Without  a  philosophic  conception  of  our 
functional  relations  to  external  nature,  to  God,  and  to 
our  fellow-men,  we  are  living  merely  by  temporary 
shifts  and  expedients,  which  lead  to  no  satisfactory 
progress  and  consequently  to  no  enduring  results.  If 
nature  has  rendered  certain  duties  inevitable,  let  us 
strive   to   know  what   they   are,  and   the   better  we 


conclusion.  187 


know  tliem    the  more  thorough,  will    bo  their   per- 
formance.    It  is  simply  because  we  will   not  look  at 
these  functions  as  nature  intended,  that  human  con- 
duct,   individually   and   collectively,    is  little    better 
than  a  track  of  doing  and  undoing,  of  blundering  and 
reparation.     Again,  from  our   historical  relations  we 
may  learn   how  uncertain  is  all   that  relates   to   the 
early  history  of  our  race,   and  how  recent  is  every 
statement  that  can  be  received  as  certain  and  reliable. 
It   teaches   as    strongly   as    anything   can   how  little 
reliance  is  to  be  placed  on  tradition,  and  how  criti- 
cally exacting  it  is  necessary  to  be  in  all  that  relates 
to  historical  evidence.     From  our  geological  relations 
we  may  presume  the  vast  antiquity  of  our  species, 
determine   how    gradual   the   ascent   has   been   from 
barbarism  to  civilization,  and  learn  how  vain  it  is  to 
expect  that  anything  in  human  progress  can  ever  be 
attained   save    through   slow  and    piecemeal   stages. 
Were   this  consideration  more  frequently  taken  into 
account,  it  would   lead   us   to  be  less  ardent  in  our 
hopes  of  progression,   and  more  hopeful  of  progress, 
in  spite  of  all  the  doubts,  delays,  and  difficulties  that 
are   ever   obstructing.     From   an    indication   of    our 
genetic  relations  we   may  gain  new  insight  into  the 
Creator's  methods,  and  discover  how  endlessly  varied 
the  results  Omniscience  can  elaborate  from  the  same 
primal   elements  ;  while  from  our  knowledge  of  the 
community  that  subsists  between  all  being,  we  may 


188  man: 


learn  to  cultivate  a  community  of  feeling,  and  to 
view  nothing  as  mean  and  degrading  save  that  which, 
unmindful  of  its  higher  position,  by  vice  and  crimin- 
ality degrades  itself.  And  lastly,  from  a  considera- 
tion of  man's  progressive  relations  we  may  be  led  to 
newer  and  higher  aspirations,  not  only  after  individ- 
ual attainments,  but  after  all  that  can  contribute 
immediately  or  remotely  to  the  ascension  of  the  race. 
A  mere  round  of  reproduction,  sameness,  and  decay, 
has  little  ennobling  in  it ;  an  incessant  onward  and 
upward  inspires  with  newer  and  higher  efforts.  It  is 
something  to  be  conscious  of  sustaining  well  our  part 
in  the  present ;  it  is  something  more  to  feel  we  are 
bequeathing  our  gift  to  the  future,  and  living,  as  it 
were,  beyond  the  period  of  our  own  individual  exist- 
ences. 

To  those  who  have  accompanied  the  author  through 
this  brief  review,  it  must  now  be  sufficiently  obvious 
that  there  is  nothing  in  the  question  of  man's  "Where, 
Whence,  and  Whither,  that  places  it  beyond  the 
legitimate  domain  of  scientific  inquiry;  nothing  that 
earnest  minds  may  not  discuss  with  freedom,  and  hon- 
est words  convey  without  restraint.  As  a  problem  of 
natural  history  it  must  be  solved  by  natural-history 
methods  ;  and,  however  uncertain  the  conclusions  }'et 
arrived  at,  they  are,  like  those  resulting  from  every 
earnest  and  truth-seeking  effort,  entitled  to  a  candid 
consideration.     That  they  run  counter  to  old  beliefs 


CONCLUSION".  1 89 


may  be  sufficient  reason  why  they  should  be  narrowly 
scanned  and  received  with  hesitancy,  but  it  is  no  hon- 
est cause  why  their  tendency  should  be  misrepresented 
and  their  advocacy  be  traduced.  Our  beliefs  are  ever 
according  to  the  measure  of  our  knowledge  ;  and  as  the 
knowledge  of  our  biological  relations  becomes  more 
intimate,  and  the  nature  of  our  geological  relations 
more  fully  established,  so  will  the  new  beliefs  respect- 
ing the  origin,  antiquity,  and  destiny  of  man  gain  a 
wider  acceptance.  It  is  the  old  warfare  with  ignorance 
and  prejudice ;  the  old  combat  between  rational  inquiry 
and  traditional  faith :  need  we  indicate  with  what  side 
the  victory  must  ultimately  rest?  As  the  older  beliefs 
in  the  sun  revolving  round  the  earth,  in  the  limited 
antiquity  of  our  globe,  in  the  permanence  of  its  seas 
and  continents,  in  the  sameness  of  its  plants  and  ani- 
mals through  all  previous  time,  in  fossils  being  sports 
of  nature,  and  a  thousand  others 'equally  sincere,  but 
equally  mistaken,  have  all  passed  or  are  passing  away, 
so  will  those  now  generally  entertained  respecting  the 
limited  antiquity,  the  exceptional  origin,  and  the  per- 
durable nature  of  man.  Have  we  not  already  gained 
by  the  establishment  of  more  enlightened  views  for 
the  former  ?  shall  we  not  reap  similar  benefits  by  the 
substitution  of  more  rational  beliefs  for  the  latter? 
Let  each  man  answer  according  as  he  believes ;  and 
as  he  believes  so  let  him  try  to  carry  conviction  to  the 
understanding  of  others. 


1>  LJ12JX 


INDEX 


Paok 

Adaptive  modification  of  structural  parts,  examples 43 

Agassiz,  Professor,  on  oneness  of  vitalit}r,  quoted 40 

Agassiz,  on  language  in  man  and  in  animals 56 

Agassiz,  on  immortality  in  animals,  quoted 57 

Agassiz,  as  to  man's  place  in  nature 173 

Ages  of  stone,  bronze,  and  iron,  nature  of. 12G 

America,  advance  of  the  Teutonic  race  in 95 

America,  South,  debasement  of  races  in 94 

Animals  and  man,  physiological  difference  between 57 

Animals,  domestication  and  extirpation  of,  by  man 89 

Andamanese,  Mouat  on  inferiority  of 78 

Ansted,  Professor,  on  continuity  of  law 31 

Anthropological  inquiries,  practical  utility  of 30,  32 

Anthropological  Review,  C.  Wake  in,  quoted 53 

Anthropological  Society  of  London,  recentness  of. 18 

Antiquity,  relative  nature  of,  geologically  speaking 119 

Antiquity  of  man,  inference  from  progress  of  civilization  112 

Antiquity  of  man  in  Western  Europe 130 

Antiquity  of  man  in  Asia  and  the  East- 133 

Astronomical  record  of  the  Chaldees  unreliable 108 

Baker,  Sir  Samuel,  as  to  inferiority  of  Negro 73 

Bischoff,  H.,  on  difference  between  man  and  brutes 53 

Breeds  of  animals  imply  long  periods  of  time 114 

Bronze  age,  evidence  of,  as  to  antiquity 125 

13 


194  INDEX. 


Page 

Brutes,  alleged  difference  between  man  and 53 

Bunsen,  Chevalier,  on  discovery  of  truth,  quoted 22 

Buusen  on  absurdity  of  chronological  systems 115 

Burton,  Captain,  as  to  inferiority  of  Red  Indian 1GG 

Celtic  race,  varieties  under  difference  of  locality 09 

Chinese  records  ancient  but  unreliable 107 

Chronology,  Chevalier  Bunsen  on  systems  of 115 

Chronology  of  the  Hebrews,  various  estimates  of. 110 

Chronological  systems,  unreliability  of. Ill 

Civilization  of  slow  and  gradual  progress S3 

Civilization  of  slow  and  gradual  growth 113 

Creation  or  development,  question  of. 151-158 

Creeds,  subscribed,  general  obstructing  nature  of. 2G 

Conclusion  and  summary  of  argument 1S1-100 

Co-relation  cf  parts,  Cuvier's  great  law  of 45 

Cosmogonies  of  various  nations,  quoted 130 

Cultivated  plants  imply  long  periods  for  their  varieties...  Ill 

Cuvier  as  to  cc-rclation  of  parts  in  animals 15 

Desvignoles  on  chronology  of  sacred  history 110 

Development  hypothesis,  nature  of 145 

Development  hypothesis,  misrepresentation  of 147 

Development  implies  superaddition  of  something  new. .  152 

Development  theory  not  materialistic  nor  degrading 153 

Development,  vital,  apparent  causes  of. 14G 

Differences  between  races  never  obliterated 98 

Dixon,  (New  America,)  superiority  of  white  man Si 

Domestication  of  animals,  time  required  for 114 

Domestication  of  man  abhorrent  to  nature 100 

Egyptian  chronology,  various  estimates  of 109 

Egyptian  monuments  and  animal  variation 104 

Ethnology  as  a  sub-science  of  anthropology 7G 

Falconer,  Dr.,  as  to  man's  first  beginnings 131 

Forbes,  Edward,  on  oneness  of  life,  quoted 39 


INDEX.  105 


Page 

Forbes,  Edward,  on  influence  of  soil  and  climate C8 

Forces  of  nature  ever  active  and  unimpaired 1C2 

Functional  relations  of  the  human  race 57-101 

Genetic  relations  of  the  human  race 129-158 

■graphical  conditions,  effects  of,  on  life 67-71 

Geological  change,  slow  progress  of 13G 

Geological  evidence,  nature  and  reliability  of. 11S-123 

Geological  relations  of  man 11S-137 

Geology  of  the  future,  and  man's  ascension.. 17G 

Hebrew  chronology,  discrepant  estimates  of. 110 

Hindoo  records  ancient  but  mythical 107 

Historical  relations  of  the  human  race 103-117 

H uxley,  Professor,  as  to  secondary  causation 141 

Immortality  in  animals,  Agassiz'  opinions 57 

Individuality  in  men  and  and  in  nations 98 

Instinct  and  reason,  relative  nature  of,  considered 50 

Irish  deer,  the  great,  its  period  in  Europe 129 

Iron  age,  relatively  to  ages  of  stone  and  bronze 126 

Kjokken-modding  or  shell-mounds  of  Denmark 127 

Lake-dwellings  of  Europe,  nature  and  antiquity  of. 125 

Lang,  Dr. ,  as  to  inferiority  of  Australian 78 

Language,  argument  of  antiquity  from 134 

Language  of  slow  and  gradual  formation 113 

Law,  natural,  continuity  and  permanence  of. 32 

Life,  its  origin  yet  unknown  to  science 49 

Life  of  the  Globe,  Past  and  Present,  quoted 59 

Linnceus,  difference  between  bimana  and  quadrumana. .  43 

Livingstones,  C.  and  D.,  as  to  inferiority  of  Negro 77 

Locality,  the  power  of,  in  mind  and  body G7 

Locke,  John,  on  faculty  of  abstraction,  quoted 53 

Lubbock,  Sir  John,  on  primitive  condition  of  man 83 


196  INDEX. 


Page 

Mammoth  contemporaneous  with  men  of  Europe 129 

Man,  Blumenbach's  subdivisions  of 7G 

Man  civilized  or  extirpated  by  man 91 

Man,  differences  between,  never  obliterated 177 

Man  ever  progressive  as  a  species 1G7 

Man,  existing  geographical  distribution  of. 91 

Man,  his  connection  with  the  great  scheme  of  life 37 

Man,  origin  of,  fabulous  accounts  of 139 

Man,  question  of  earlier  and  later  varieties 82 

Man,  question  of  his  early  condition 83 

Man,  question  of  species  or  varieties  merely..., 72 

Mechanical  appliances  imply  long  periods  of  time ]14 

Mental  manifestations  in  the  lower  animals 51 

Modern  thought  and  ancient  beliefs 140 

Mailer,  Max,  as  to  descent  of  language 134 

Miiller,  Professor  Max,  on  language  in  man 54 

Murray,  Andrew,  on  divisions  of  mankind 75 

Murray,  Andrew,  as  to  development  per  saltum 150 

Negro,  general  inferiority  of,  as  a  variety 77,  78 

Old  World  races,  progressive  ascension  of 175 

Origin  of  life  yet  unknown  to  science 49 

Owen  as  to  difference  between  man  and  monkey 42 

Owen  quoted  as  to  human  progression 1G9 

Plants,  cultivation  and  extirpation  of,  by  man 89 

Practical  bearings  of  the  inquiry 1S5 

Progression  of  man  augmented  in  the  future 1G9 

Progressive  ascension,  inspiring  character  of 1SG 

Progressive  relations  of  human  race 1G1-181 


'£>•■ 


Races,  question  of  admixture  and  amalgamation 93 

Reason  and  instinct,  relative  nature  of,  considered 50 

Reindeer  and  reindeer  period  in  Southern  Europe 129 

Religion  and  science,  obvious  relations  between 25 

Religion,  progressive  phases  of. 172 


INDEX.  197 


Pago 
Rhinoceros,  the  woolly-haired,  contemporary  with  men 

in  Western  Europe 129 

Savage  condition  of  primitive  man 83 

Science  and  religion,  obvious  relations  between 25 

Shell-mounds  of  Western  Europe,  their  antiquity 127 

Species  and  varieties  of  man,  question  of 72 

Spiritual  community  between  man  and  animals 57 

Squieron  admixture  and  amalgamation  of  races 92 

Squier  on  the  influence  of  geographical  conditions. G5 

Stone  age,  evidence  of  antiquity 126 

Tait,  Bishop  of  London,  on  the  duty  of  scientific  research  23 
Theological  misrepresentation  of  the  question  under 

review 24 

Tools,  mechanical  and  intellectual  invention  of. 88 

Unity  and  equality  of  human  race  considered, 78 

Unity  or  plurality  of  human  race  considered 75 

Variation  in  life-forms,  principle  and  causes  of. 4G 

Variation  in  life-forms,  results  of 114 

Varieties  or  species  of  men,  question  of 72 

Vital  development,  causes  on  which  it  depends HG 

Vital  development,  possibility  of  investigating 48 

Vital  force,  as  co-related  to  other  natural  forces 50 


Wake,  C,  on  difference  between  men  and  brutes,  quoted  63 

Wilkinson,  Sir  J.  Gardner,  as  to  character  of  history....  10G 

Yankee  form  and  features,  recent  evolution  of 63 

Zoological  classes,  their  natural  relations 41 


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